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Ai  I  ffOR: 


TITLE: 


FABER,  G[EORGE] 
SfTANLEY] 


REMARKS  ON  THE 
EFFUSION  .... 


M 


PLACE: 


LONDON 


DA  TE 


1815 


Restrictions  on  Use: 


COLUMBIA  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARIES 
PRESERVATION  DEPARTMENT 

BIBLIOGK  APf  IK  :  MK  i{(  )}'ORM  I  ARGET 


Master  Negative  # 


Original  Material  as  Filmed  -  Existing  Bibliographic  Record 


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fti  Srtanley^.  1773-1854:.  | 

on  ti  e  effusion  of  the  fifth  apoca^  1 

on  of  the  imperial  j 

:  which  is  added  I 
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PF  THE 


FIFTH  APOCALYPTIC 


AKD  THE 


LATE  EXTRAORDINARY  RESTORATION 


OF   THE 


31mpei'ial  Eeuolutionar? 

GOVERNMENT  OF  FRANCE: 


TO  WHICH  IS  ADDED 


A  CRITICAL  EXAMIXATION 


OP 


MR.  PRERE'S 


COMBINED    VIEW    OF  THE 


rRGPHECIES  OF  DANIEL,  ESDRJS  AND  ST.  JOHN. 


BS 


BY  G.  S.  FABER,  BD. 

-RECTOR    OF    LONG-NEWTON, 


Icnijon : 


PRINTED    FOI^F.   ^^ANB  J.    RIVINGTaXj 

NO.    (||t>    ST.    PA%I*S    CHURCH  yard; 

1?^  tuw  and  Ciibirt,  St.  John''s  Sqi^arct  CUrkenioeU, 


1815. 


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REMARKS 


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A^D    TIIK 


LAT£    EXTRAORDINARY    RESTORATION 


OF   TUB 


IMPERIAL    RETOLUTIONARY   GOVERNMENT    OP    FRANCE. 


If 


I 


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Is 


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l\ 


In  ofder  that  the  principles  on  which  my 
sentiments  relative  to  the  effusion  of  the  fifth 
apocalyptic  vial  and  the  late  restoration  of 
the  revolutionary  government  in  France  are 
founded,  may  be  the  more  distinctly  under- 
stood, it  will  be  proper  for  me  briefly  to  point 
out  the  steps  by  which  I  arrive  at  my  com 
elusions.  For  any  attempt  to  explain  a 
particular  part  of  a  chronological  prophecy 
will  be  mere  guess-'work,  unless  it  emanatQ 
out  of  a  well-established  general  system. 

I.  The  author  of  the  Apocalypse  describes 
himself  as  beholding  in  prophetic  vision  a 
wild-beast,  which  has  seven  heads  and  ten 
horns.     This  symbol,  by  the  general  consent 


a.6 

I 
If 


I   i 


lU 


Jl 


^ 


of  commentators,  though  they  have  not  always 
been  consistent  in  the  detail,  represents  the 
Roman  empire  from  first  to  last,  under  all  its 
different  governments,  and  in  its  two  succes- 
sive states  of  union  and  division.  The  last 
head  or  form  of  government,  which  St.  John 
represents  as  being  double,  a  seventh  merging 
in  an  eighth  which  two  are  yet  essentially  but 
one,  I  have  shewn  at  large,  in  my  Dissertation 
on  the  1 260  days,  to  be  the  feudal  or  Carlc- 
vingian  Emperorship  rising  out  of  the  Roman 
Patriciate.  From  the  divided  state  of  Europe 
at  every  subsequent  period,  it  almost  necessa- 
rily followed,  that  this  Emperorship  was  of  au 
ambulatory  nature :  for,  except  its  first  rise,  it 
exercised  no  real  authority  over  the  general 
Roman  empire,  because  it  was  destined  to  co- 
exist with  ten  regal  horns ;  but  yet  it  bore  the 
predicted  character  of  a  head,  because  in 
point  of  rank  and  precedency  it  was  ever  tlie 
acknowledged  head  of  the  European  republic. 
Such  was  the  manner,  in  which  it  existed :  and 
such  was  the  sole  n>.anncr,  in  which  it  could 
exist  agreeably  both  to  prophecy  and  to  the 
nature  of  tlun'gs ;  for  in  no  other  manner  i.-^  it 
possible,  tiuit  a  head  should  co-exist  with  ton 
independent  horns. 

1 .  The  last  head  then  of  the  Roman  empire 
arose  in  France  and  Italy;  for  the  French 
monarch  Charlemagne  was  successively  Patn- 


cian  of  Rome  and  Emperor  of  the  Romaics. 
This  dignity  remained  for  some  generations  in 
his  posterity.  At  length  the  French  king  lost 
the  title  of  Roman  Emperor;  and,  in  the  day$ 
ofOtho  the  great,  the  last  head  was  trans* 
ferred  from  France  to  Germany.  Here  i| 
continned  for  many  ages,  its  precedence  as 
the  undoubted  head  of  the  Western  Koman 
empire  being  fully  acknowledged  by  every 
independent  king,  though  its  actual  represen- 
tative was  sometimes  the  chief  of  one  family 
and  sometimes  of  another. 

But,  as  this  head  arose  in  France  and  Italy, 
and  afterwards  migrated  into  Germany;  so  it 
was  destined,  in  like  manner,  to  leave  Ger- 
many, and  to  return  into  France  and  Italy. 
In  May  1804,  Buonaparte  assumed  the  titl^ 
of  Emperor  of  the  French.     In  August  1804, 
the  Emperor  of  Germany  or  (to  give  him  his 
then  regular  official  title)  the  Emperor  of  the 
Romans   assumed   the  title  of   Emperor  of 
Austria    for  his    hereditary   dominions.     In 
March    1805,   Buonaparte  became   King  of 
Italy  and  Rome.     In  July  1806,  sprang  up 
under  the  French  emperor  tlie  Confederation 
of   the    Rhine.      And,    on    the    memorably 
August  7,  1806,  the  Austrian  Emperor  of  the 
Romans    formally  abdicated  that  title,  and 
absolved  all  the  princes  of  the  empire  from 
the  duties  by  which  they  were  united  to  Jiiiii 

b2 


f^ 


f 


jdbMAlttjaBKiU 


as  its  legal  chief*  At  this  point  then,  the 
Carlovingian  en^ierorship,  or  the  last  head  of 
the  great  Roman  beast^  manifestly  reverted  to 
France  and  Italy,  where  it  had  first  originated: 
ind,  agreeably  to  so  plain  an  historical  fact, 
Buonaparte,  as  if  fully  conscious  of  the  transfer, 
has  affected  on  all  occasions  to  consider  himself 
the  successor,  not  of  the  Capetian,  but  of  the 
Carlovingian,  princes.  In  his  armorial  bear- 
ings, the  bees  ol  the  two  first  dynasties  have 
supplanted  the  lilies  of  the  third:  and,  in  his 
style,  he  has  adopted  the  title  of  Emperor 
rather  than  that  of  K?«o  *. 

2.  Such  being  the  case,  if  I  have  succeeded 
in  proving  the  ambulatory  Carlovingian  Em- 
perorship to  be  the  last  head  or  form  of  par- 
amount government  in  the  Roman  empire: 
ihen,  as  that  head  paused  away  from  Germany 
in  August  1 806,  and  as  the  French  Emperor 
then  became  its  manifest  representative;  what- 
ever is  foretold  in  prophecy  relative  to  this 
last  head  subsequent  to  August  1806,  must 
doubtless  be  fulfilled  in  the  Roman  imperial 
government  of  France. 

.  3.  Let  me  not  however  be  here  misun- 
derstood as  asserting,  that,  because  the  tiaus- 

♦  See  Butler's  Revolutiona  of  Germany,   p.  207,  208. 
This  is  a  most  useful  manual  for  these,  v\  lio  wish  to  obtain  a 
dear  and  succinct  view  of  the  various  changes  in  the  succcs- 
*sion  of  the  impeiial-^ignity.  - 


fcr  took  p]ace  during  the  reign  of  Napoleon 
Buonaparte,  that  single  individual  hencefoi'lh 
becomes  the  exclusive  scope  of  prophecy  until 
the   awfid   retributory  day   of  Armageddon. 
He  is  no  further  the  subject  of  it,  than,  as  his 
actions  form  a  pai't  of  the  general  actions  of 
the  Infidel  King  or  Kingdom  of  Daniel  now 
identified  with  the  last  head  of  the  Roman 
beafet.     Pi^ophecy  does  not  so  much  treat  of 
individuals^  as  of  comimmities :   and,   if  the 
wonderful  events  of  these  last  days  be  indeed 
foretold,  as  I  believe  them  to  be ;  the  Infidel 
Roman  government  of  France,  no  mere  indir 
vidttal  who  may  for  a  season  administer  it,  is 
the  theme  of  the  inspired  writers.     It  matters 
little,  whether  Robespierre,  or  Buonaparte,  or 
any  other  ruffian  of  the  same  stamp,  be  tor  a 
season  at  the  head  of  affairs ;  the  revolutionary 
government,  as  contradistinguished  from  tliat 
ichich  preceded  it,  is  alone  the  subject  of  pro- 
phecy.    So  tliat,  in  my  view  of  the  question,  if 
Buonaparte  were  slain  tomorrow,  and  if  one 
of  his  generals  stepped  into  his  vacant  throne, 
no  event  would  have  occurred  which  were 
worth  prophetic  notice.     I  am  inchued  indeed 
to  believe,  that  the  revolutionary  imperial  go 
vernment  of  France,  whatever  shrewd  blows  it 
may  receive  during  the  intermediate  period, 
M  ill  never  be  subverted  until  the  awful  day  of 

J4 


t      I- 


\  h 


f" 


i   I 


}mtMiSSiM 


Armageddon*;  but  I  hold  it  to  be  of  the 
very  le^t  importance  to  the  aocomplisliment 
of  prophecy,  whether  Buonaparte,  or  any 
other  sitnilar  miscreant,  be  actually  at  the 
helm.  The  dynasty  or  government^  I  repeat 
it,  not  the  administering  individual,  is  the  sub- 
ject of  prophecy ;  so  that  I  cannot  but  consider 
ft  as  a  vain  v^^aste  of  time  to  speculate  upon 
what  may  be  the  probable  end  of  the  man 
Napoleon. 

11.  The  apocalyptic  series  of  the  seven 
trumpets  is  divided  into  four  and  three.  The 
four  first  trumpets,  as  our  best  commentators 
(with  some  slight  shades  of  dlfFerence)  are 
unanimously  agreed,  and  as  (I  thhik)  there 
cannot  be  a  reasonable  ground  for  doubt, 
describe  the  subversion  of  the  Western  Roman 
empire  and  the  harassing  of  the  Eastern  Ro- 
man empire  by  the  Gothic  warriors  of  the 
north.  The  three  last  trumpets  are  empha- 
tically designated  as  three  woes :  gtud  of  the^e 
the  two  first  are  now  generally  allowed  to  re- 
late to  the  Saracens  and  the  Turks.  Suppos- 
ing  these  then  to  be  the  two  first  woe?,  it  is 
difficult  to  conceive  what  we  are  to  expect 
for  the  third  woe,  if  the  French  revolution 

"*  See  Dan.  xi.  56.  He  is  to  prosper,  of  course  with 
■some  temporary  incidental  exceptions,  iiil  the  indignation  be 
aecompiisfud.    One  of  thts^  exceptions  we  have  just  wit- 


witii  all  its  amazing  consequences  be  not 
intended.  Accordingly,  in  my  work,  I  have 
set  forth  at  large  my  reasons  for  believing, 
that  tlie  third  woe  is  the  French  revolution. 
But,  if  the  thu'd  woe  be  the  French  revolution  ; 
then  the  seventh  trumpet  mu^;t  liave  begun  to 
sound,  because  the  seventh  trumpet  ushers  in 
the  third  woe.  And,  if  the  seventh  trumpet 
has  begun  to  sound ;  then  the  series  of  the 
«even  vials  must  have  con>menced,  because  it 
may  be  proved  to  demonstration  that  all  the 
seven  vials  are  introduced  by  and  compre* 
hended  under  the  seventh  trumpet 

Agreeably  to  this  arrangement,  and  merely 
following  the  course  of  events,  1  suppose  tlie 
first  vial  to  relate  to  the  noisome  sore  of 
atheism,  which  first  openly  broke  out  in 
the  August  of  1 792 ;  the  second  and  third,  to 
the  dreadful  bloodshed,  internal  and  external, 
produced  by  the  French  revolution ;  and  the 
fourth,  to  the  tremendous  military  tyranny 
exercised  by  the  chief  of  the  revohitionary 
government,  when  the  atheistical  republic 
became  a  despotic  monarchy  under  Buo- 
naparte. 

HI.  When  my  book  was  originally  pub- 
lished in  the  beginning  of  the  year  1806, 1  saw 
clearly  that  the  fifth  vial  had  not  then  been 
ix)ured  out :  and  1  further  perceived,  that  the 
chief  of  the  house  of  Austria,  in  his  quality 


It 


') 


!   I 


11     ti 


(ir 


i'l; 


I. 


»if 


t  i  w 


^ 


of  the  Carlovingian  Emperor  of  the  Romans, 
was  at  that  time  the  representative  of  the  last 
head  of  the  Roman  beast ;  no  transfer  of  the 
dignity  to  France  having  then  taken  place* 
Hence  I  could  only  say  in  general  terms,  that, 
whenever  the  fifth  vial  was  poured  out,  it 
would  aftect  that  European  government  which 
should  then  be  the  representative  of  the  Ro- 
man beast's  last  head;  but  that  it  was  impos-p 
sible  to  tell  beforehand,  which  government 
would  then  be  its  representative.  My  book 
made  its  appearance  in  the  January  of  1806; 
and,  in  August  1806,  time,  the  best  interpreter 
of  prophecy,  solved  the  problem.  The  Carlo- 
vingian Emperorship  was  then  transferred 
from  Germany  to  France:  and,  as  the  govern- 
ment of  that  country  thus  became  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  last  head,  whatever  is  foretold 
of  that  last  head  subsequent  to  the  prophecy  of 
the  fourth  vial  *  must  plainly  be  accomplished 
in  that  government. 

Thus  far,  if  my  principles  were  valid,  was 
sufficiently  manifest :  but  still,  as  the  fifth 
vial  was  yet  future,  it  was  impossible  to  say 
definitely  what  precise  event  or  events  it  would 
bring  to  pass,  I  might  indeed  affirm,  as  in 
fact  I   did  affirm,    that  it  portended  some 


*  That  is,  subsequent  to  the  prophecy  contained  in  Rev^ 
xvi.  8,  9. 


*1 


grievous  calamity;  which  should  strike  the 
very  throne  of  the  Roman  beast,  which  should 
fill  his  whole  kingdom  with  darkness,  and 
Mhich  should  cause  his  adherents  to  gnaw 
Jtheir  tongues  for  pain.  I  could  see  likewise 
very  distinctly,  on  the  supposition  that  my 
principles  were  valid,  that  the  calamity,  fore- 
told under  the  fifth  vial,  must  necessarily 
befall  the  imperial  revolutionary  government 
of  France;  because  that  government  had  then 
become  the  last  head  of  the  Roman  beast,  and 
the  prophecy  respects  the  Roman  beast  under 
his  last  or  Carlovingian  head.  But,  how  or 
ichen  the  French  government  was  to  writhe 
under  the  calamity  in  question,  I  pretended 
not  to  determine ;  because  the  prediction  was 
as  yet  unaccomplished.  I  could  only  wait  iu 
patience  for  the  presignified  event:  and  so, 
accordingly,  I  did  wait. 

The  words  of  the  prophecy  are  these.  And 
^^^^  Jif^^^  angel  poured  out  his  vial  on  the 
THRONE  of  the  beast :  and  his  kingdom  was 
full  of  darkness^  and  they  gnawed  their 
tongues  for  pain^  and  blasphemed  the  God  of 
heaven  because  of  their  pains  and  their  sores, 
find  REPENTED  NOT  of  their  deeds^. 

Now,  as  I  have  just  observed,  it  is  easy 
enouglj  to  see  the  general  nature  of  this  pre- 


•'  1 


I   " 


tl'l 


i^Jl 


I. 
■J.l 


u 


*  Rev.  xvi,  10. 


■'■-"J."  ..•-•., 


w 


15 

licted  rolamilv,  though  historical  facts  alone 
can  enable  us\o  explain  it  in  detail. 

TAe  imperial  throne  of  France^  then  the 
representative  of  the  beasts  last  head,  is  to  be 
violently  attacked :  the  attack  is  to  prove  suc' 
cessful;  for  the  bestial  kingdom  is  to  be 
filled  UHth  darkness :  the  military  adherents  of 
the  throne  are  to  be  filed  with  diabolical  rage, 
on  account  of  the  calamity  sustained  by  that 
throne :  and  yet  no  sig7is  of  repentance  are 
to  appear. 

This  is  evidently  the  general  purport  of  the 
prophecy;  if  we  admit  only,  that  the  Carlo- 
vingian  Emperorship  is  the  last  head  of  the 
beast,  and  that  that  Emperorship  was  trans- 
ferred from  Germany  to  its  native  France  in 
the  August  of  1 806. 

Accordingly,  it  was  not  long  before  events 
furnished  us  with  a  key  to  the  particular  im- 
port of  the  prophecy,  which  w^as  found  exactly 
to  agree  with  its  supposed  general  import. 

1.  The  fifth  vial,  if  I  mistake  not,  began  to 
flow  in  the  year  1808  ;  when  the  Spanish  na- 
tion arose  as  one  man,  and  (in  perfect  har- 
mony with  the  prediction)  struck  directly  at 
the  THRONE  of  the  beast  by  declaring  the  im- 
perial government  of  Buonaparte  to  be  a  ty- 
rannical usurpation.  From  this  cliaracteristic 
I  suspected  at  the  time  that  the  fifth  vial  had 
commenced ;  and,  on  that  ground^   I    anti- 


■mlifl  if 

cipated  a  series  of  disaster*  to  France,  though 
of  course  I  knew  not  to  what  precise  extent 
they  might  amount.  My  sentiments  on  tlie 
matter  stand  recorded  in  a  respectable  nK)nth- 
ly  publication  :  and  I  scrupled  not  to  avow 
ni>  belief,  that  the  Spanish  struggle  would  b© 
successful  *. 

As  yet  however  the  "stream  flowed  with 
comparative  penimousness :  baffled  in  Spain> 
Tranche  Was  nevertheless  eminently  successful 
in  Germany :  the  vial  had  merely  comn^iKied. 
But  its  baneful  effects  «oon  began  to  be  felt 
upon  a  larger  scale.  The  autumn  of  1812 
was  marked  by  Buonaparte's  frantic  attack 
upon  Russia.  Of  his  vast  armanfjent,  not  a 
tithe  returned  to  tell  the  tale^  The  campaiga 
of  1813  was  disthiguished  by  bfe  complete  de^ 
feat  before  Leipsic,  his  loss  of  the  whole  ctf 
Germany,  and  his  disgraceful  flight  across  the 
Rhine.  The  vial  was  nmv  flovvitig  with  pop- 
teutons  rapidity:  but  even  yet,  its  stream, 
though  copious,  was  not  at  the  height.  In 
the  spring  of  1814,  the  allies  occupied  Paris; 
and,  as  the  characteristic  mark  of  the  fifth 
vial  is,  that  it  should  be  poured  out  upon  the 
THRONE  of  the  beast;  so,  in  exact  accord- 
ance with  prophecy,  the  sovereigns  declared 

♦  See  Christian  Observer  for  Dec.  1S08.  p.  7^7^    My 
paper  there  inserted  bears  date  Oct.  1.  1808. 


if 


kfj 


12 

tliat  they  would  treat  neither  with  Buona- 
parte nor  with  any  member  of  his  family,  and 
commanded  the  vanquished  French  senate  to 
call  another  prince  to  the  throne.  Their 
mandate  was  obeyed :  Buonaparte  was  com- 
fielled  to  abdicate  :  and  the  ancient  dynasty 
was  restored, 

•    But,  though  the  vial  was  thus  to  he  poured 
out  on  the  throne  of  the  beast,  no  intimation 
is  given,  that  his  sovereignty  should  be  com- 
pletely anmhilated :  his  imperial  throne  was 
to  be  shaken  indeed  to  its  very  centre,  but  it 
^^snoVio  he  overturned  entirely;  his  king- 
dom was  to  remain,  though  filled  with  dark- 
ness.    Such  is  evidently  the  drift  of  the  pro- 
phecy: and  with  it   facts  precisely  agreed, 
though  in  a  manner  wholly  unprecedented  in 
4iistory.     Buonaparte,  driven  as  he  was  from 
FraTice  and  Italy,  was  yet  neither  stripped  of 
all  his  dominions,  nor  was  he  compelled  to 
resign  his  imperial  dignity.      As  the  Western 
empire  was  not  less  the  Western  empire  in 
the  eye  of  prophecy,  when  confined  during 
the  short  reign  of  Augustulus  to  the  limits  of 
Rome ;  and,  as  the  Eastern  empire  was  not 
less  the  Eastern  empire  in  the  eye  of  prophecy, 
when  confined  during  the  reign  of  the  last 
Constantine,  to  the  limits  of  Constantinople ; 
so  neither  was  the  kingdom  of  the  last  head 
less  the  kingdom  of  the  last  head,  nor  did  it« 


13 

representative  cease  to  be  its  true  representa-- 
tive;  because  his  throne  was  attacked,  be- 
cause his  kingdom  was  filled  with  darkness, 
and  because  his  actual  dominions  were  con- 
tracted within  the  narrow  space  of  a  small 
island.  The  allies  not  only  suffered  the  tyger 
to  escape  from  the  toils ;  but  they  universally 
for  the  first  time,  even  in  the  hour  of  his  ad- 
versity, recognized  him  as  the  lawful  Em- 
peror of  the  West,  tliough  they  confined  his 
sovereignty  to  the  isle  of  Elba.  Unexampled 
in  hifirtory,  as  the  fate  of  Buonaparte  has  been ; 
yet  the  confinement  of  the  Carlovingian  so- 
vereignty within  a  very  narrow  province  is  by 
no  means  unexampled.  Thus,  to  give  a  single 
instance,  when  the  last  male  of  the  house  of 
Austria  died,  and  when  his  hereditary  domi- 
nions passed  into  the  house  of  Lorraine  ;  the 
petty  elector  of  Bavaria  became  Emperor  of 
the  Romans,  and  in  that  quality  was  the  ac- 
Juiowledged  head  of  the  Roman  world  though 
his  actual  dominions  consisted  only  of  a  smaU 
German  principality.  The  emperor  Napo.- 
leon  then  in  the  isle  of  Elba  was  not  less  the 
representative  of  Charlemagne,  than  the  em- 
peror Napoleon  upon  the  throne  of  France, 
Italy,  and  the  western  Germany.  The  allies 
unconsciously  fulfilled  a  prophecy,  in  recog- 
nizing the  imperial  title  of  Napoleon  and  in 


I 


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.  1 .1 

i 

I 
f 


fi 

If 

!llt 


m 


.11 


I  *. 


>i 


'  ( I 


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11 


I  f  ^ 

t- 


;,     f* 


III 


r4 

jjdrmitli^g  him  ta  hold  a  sovefeigwty  however 
amall.  Had  they  not  do«e  this,  the  revalue 
Uonary  government  would  have  ceased  to 
exist :  %  doing  it,  they  preserved  the  line  of 
the  revolutionary  government  unbroken. 

2,  Such  were  the  effects  of  the  fifth  vial 
upon  the  THRONE  of  the  beast;  nor  were  they 
less  felt  throughout  his  kingdom  :  we  have  all 
been  witnesses?,  that,  as  his  kingdom,  France 
has  been  filled  with  darkness;  and  the  ex- 
treme rage  of  the  military,  at  finding  their 
favourite  chief  driven  out  to  make  room  for 
the  peaceful  Louis,  cannot  be  more  accurately 
ijeseribed,  according  to  every  account  which 
we  have  had  of  it,  tlian  in  the  emphatic  lan- 
guage of  prophecy  that  they  gnawed  their 
tongues  for  pa  in. 

3.  Nor  has  the  last  part  of  the  prediction 
been  less  minutely  accomplished.  No  signs 
of  PENITENCE  havc  appeared.  The  infa- 
tuated Capets  have  pertinaciously  adhered  to 
the  contemptible  superstition  of  Popery : 
w  hile  their  subjects,  plunged  (as  I  have  been 
credibly  informed)  in  the  very  grossest  prac- 
tical abominations,  have  despised  the  theolo- 
gical nmmmeries  of  their  restored  prhices,  not 
85  enlightened  scriptural  protestants,  but  as 
determined  infidels  or  atheists. 

IV.  The  same  principles  which  led  me  to 
expect  sonie  remarkable  attack  on  the  throiie 

6 


I 


n 

of  the  last  head  even  when  it  seemed  to  be 
flourishing  in  all  its  palmy  vigour,  led  me  also 
to  expect  that  the  restoration  of  the  Bourbons 
would  not  be  permanent  even  when  all  Eu- 
rope was  rejoicing  at  the  downfall  of  Buona- 
parte. The  opinion  I  repeatedly  avowed  to 
my  friends,  both  in  conversation  and  in  let- 
ters :  and  so  fully  was  I  convinced  of  its  sta- 
bility, that,  in  the  fifth  edition  of  my  work 
published  early  in  the  present  year,  I  hesitated 
not  to  insert  a  long  note  to  that  purpose^ 
which  bears  date  July  28,  1814,  as  the  time 
when  it  was  written  *.  As  for  the  individual 
who  might  be  the  instrument  of  this  expected 
counter-revolution,  it  appeared  to  me  to  be  a 
matter  of  very  little  consequence :  for  the 
struggle,  according  to  ray  view  of  prophetic 
interpretation,  lay  not  between  the  two  mdivi' 
duals  Louis  and  Napoleon,  but  between  the 
two  governments  over  which  they  severally 
presided.  Hence  I  only  intimated  my  belief 
to  be,  that  the  Bourbon  government  would 
not  stand,  but  that  the  revolutionary  imperial 
government  would  be  restored.  I  judged  it 
very  pi^ohahle^  that  tlie  agent  might  be  Napo- 

*  See  my  Dissert,  on  the  ICGO  days.  5th  edit.  vol.  ii. 
p.  400  ft  intra.  To  one  of  my  friends  I  wrote  a  letter  to  the 
3ame  purpose,  dated  May  1 9,  1314.  Ht  has  just  rcmiaded 
me  of  the  circumstaacc. 


1     5 

I 

I 


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i  i  "^ 


}i 


i  I 


'If 


f  <<  1 


i^ 


m 


§ 


16 

leon  himself:  though  I  deemed  it,  as  I  still 
deem  it,  altogether  uncertain  a  pftori,  whetli^r 
he,  or  his  son,  or  some  other  miHtary  adven- 
turer, would  be  the  person.  I  only  thought 
myself  warranted  to  expect  the  downtall  of 
the  regal  government  and  the  restoration  of 
the  revolutionary  imperial  government ;  and 
thisy  accordingly,  I  did  expect :  but,  hoic  soon^ 
or  by  whose  agency,  it  might  happen,  I  pre- 
tended not  to  determine  ;  because  the  pro- 
phecy afforded  nie  tio  sort  of  intimation.  My 
own  private  conjecture  indeed  was,  that  the 
restoration  of  the  revolutionary  government 
would  probably  not  take  place,  until  ten  of 
fifteen  or  even  twenty  years  :  but,  as  this  was 
mere  conjecture,  I  was  not  warranted  in 
making  it  public ;  and  events  have  shewn, 
that  so  far  I  was  quite  mistaken,  for  the  re- 
storation has  followed  with  a  rapidity  which 
I  had  not  anticipated.  I  mention  this,  to 
shew  how  vague  and  uncertain  conjecture 
must  always  be,  when  it  is  not  built  on  Jixed 
principles. 

1.  But,  though  my  principles  did  not  en- 
able me  to  determine  the  time  wheUy  or  the 
ion  by  whorn^  the  restoration  of  the  revo- 
.c.onary  government  would  be  effected  ;  they 
did  enable  me  to  assert  positively,  that  sooner 


17 

or  later  such  a  restoration  would  take  place. 
I  shall  therefore  state  the  principles^  on  which 
my  opinion  was  founded. 

The  last  head  of  the  Roman  beast,  at  the 
period  when  the  fifth  vi^l  began  to  flow,  had 
been  shewn  to  be  the  imperial  government  of 
France :  consequently,  as  events  have  proved, 
the  plague  of  the  fifth  vial  fell  upon  the  throne 
of  Napoleon.      Now,  under  the    sixth  vial, 
which  at  some  indefinite  interval  follows  the 
fifth,  we  find  the  beast,  notwithstanding  that 
tremendous  attack  upon  his  throne  which  fills 
his  whole   kingdom   with   darkness,  just  as 
rampant  and  powerful  as  ever  :  for  he  is  de- 
scribed, in  conjunction  with  the  dragon  and 
the  false  prophet,  and  by  the  agency  of  wliat 
are  mystically  termed  three  unclean  spirits  like 
frogs,  as  gathering  together  into  one  grand 
confederacy  all  the  king's  of  the  Roman  or 
papal  world  *.    It  is  not  difficult  to  guess  what 
the  nature  of  this  confederacy  will  be ;  for  the 
establishment  of  a  sort  of  feudal  or  federal  em- 
pire, in  which  all  the  continental  sovereigns 
of  western  Europe  should  be  the  vassals  of  the 
Franco-Roman  monarchy,  has  already  been 
developed  as  the  leading  policy  of  Buonaparte. 
We  learn  then  from  the  yet  unaccomplished 
prophecy  of  the  sixth  vial,  that  such  an  em- 

•  Rev.  xvi.  12—16. 


i ' 


,M 


I 

II 

m 

(I 


i  f 


rl^ . . 


\ 


1* 

11 1 


18 

pire  ivilly  sooner  or  later,  be  established  either 
by  Napoleon  himself  6r  by  some  successor  of 
his.    But  this  prophecy  plainly  could  not  have 
been  fulfilled,  unless  the  revolutionary  imperial 
government  of  France  had  been  previously 
restored  :  for,  if  it  had  continued  in  the  state 
to  which  it  was  reduced  in  the  spring  of  1814, 
how  could  it  accomplish  what  it  must  accom- 
plish  under  the  yet  future  sixth  vial ;  that  is 
to  say,  how  could  it  succeed  in  forming  a  fe- 
deral   empire  of  A\\  the  kings  of  the  Latin 
ivorld  ?     Hence  I  distinctly  perceived,  that 
the  recovery  of  the  beast  from  the  attack  made 
upon  his  throne  under  the  fifth  vial,  or  (in 
plain  English)  the  restoration  of  the  imperial 
government  and  the  downfall  of  the  Bourbon 
government,  was  absolutely  necessary  to  the 
accomplishment  of  the  prophecy  of  the  sixtli 
vial ;  because,  unless  such  restoration  should 
bave  been  previously  effected,  the  confederacy 
under   the  sixth  vial  plainly   could   not  be 
brouglit  about  by  tlie  last  head  of  the  beast 
or  (in  other  words)  by  the  imperial  govern- 
ment of  France.     Such  being  the    case,  I 
evidently  saw,  tliat,  sooner  or  later,  either  be- 
fore or  about  the  effusion  of  the  sixth  vial,  the 
Bourbon  government  must  fall,  and  the  im- 
perial government  must  be  restored.     Accord- 
ingly, my  reliance  on  my  principles  was  so 
stron"-,  that  I  had  no  fear  in  making  my  opi- 


19 

ttion  public  :  but,  as  I  have  already  observed^ 
1  had  no  means  from  prophecy  of  determining, 
either  the  time  when^  or  the  individual  by 
whomy  the  counter-revolution  would  be  effected. 
The  naked  fact  abne  was  all  that  I  could 
vouch  for* 

2.  In  a  similar  manner,  and  on  similar 
principles,  though  I  think  it  certain  that  a 
confederacy  of  the  Latin  kings  will  hereafter 
be  formed  under  the  controul  of  the  last  head 
of  the  Roman  beast ;  yet  I  can  neither  say 
how  soouy  nor  can  I  at  all  determine  whether 
the  war  in  which  we  are  about  to  embark  will 
be  successful  or  unsuccessful  on  the  part  of 
the  allies.  My  conjecture  is,  that  for  a  season 
it  will  be  successful ;  but,  as  my  grounds  are 
purely  hypothetical^  my  conjecture  must  be 
received  accordingly.  The  grounds  however 
are  these  :  and  the  reader  may  speculate  upon 
them  at  his  leisure. 

At  present  it  is  wholly  uncertain,  whether 
we  have  reached  the  end  of  the  fifth  vial  or 
not  If  then  we  have  reached  it,  France  will 
be  successful ;  if  we  have  not  reached  it,  the 
allies  will  be  successful. 

Why  then,  it  may  be  asked,  do  I  conjecture 
tlie  success  of  one  party,  rather  than  of  the 
other  ? 

My  reason  is  this.  The  characteristic  badg^ 
of  the  fifth  vial  is  an  attack  upofi  tjie  thkqne 

c2 


■      is 


'    ■  I 


a    'N  i 


m 


«;'       Ij 


./l 


I 


if 


20 

of  the  last  headi  NbW  the  principles,  on 
which  the  allies  embark  in  the  present  war, 
strongly  partake  of  the  characteristic  badge  in 
question.  They  openly  avow^  that  their  prin- 
ciples in  1815  are  the  very  same  as  their 
principles  in  1814  ;  that  is  to  say,  they  openly 
avow,  that  they  war  exclusively  against  the 
THRONE  of  Napoleom  Here  then  we  have 
the  characteristic  badge  of  the  fifth  vial :  and 
hence  I  think  it  not  unlikely,  that  the  war  may 
to  a  certain  extent  be  successful. 

The  intelligent  reader  will  easily  perceive^ 
why  this  is  a  mere  conjecture.  I  want  the 
basisy  by  the  possession  of  which  I  could 
speak  with  certainty.  Were  I  sure  that  the 
fifth  vial  had  not  completely  run  out,  I  should 
be  sure  that  the  allies  w^ould  be  victorious. 
But  I  am  not  sure  :  and  therefore  I  can  only 
guess,  from  the  remarkable  character  of  the 
impending  war,  that  the  fifth  vial  is  not  yet 
quite  exhausted.  Should  that  prove  to  be  the 
case,  then  no  doubt  the  allies  will  be  victori- 
ous,  and  revolutionary  France  will  experience 
yet  further  calamities. 

V.  The  next  primary  event  in  prophecy 
will  be  the  downfall  of  the  Ottoman  em- 
pire, which  will  begin  to  be  dismembered  as 
soon  as  the  sixth  \ial  sliall  begin  to  flow. 
During  thp  effusion  of  the  same  vial,  the^reat 
confederacy  of  tlie  beast  will  be  formed ;  very 


if. 
i 


p 


21 

probably,  I  think,  by  subtle  and  dark  in^ 
trigues.  How  soon  these  events  will  take 
place,  we  have  no  means  of  determining  :  but 
fresh  light  breaks  in  upon  this  awful  subject 
every  day. 

Long-Kcivton, 
May 'J,  181.-. 


V 


1 


A 


if 


<l 


li 


n 


./ 


f  I 
I 


4i^ 


CRITICAL  EXAMINATION 


OF 


MR.    FRERE  S   COMBUSTED    VIEW   OF    TH^ 

PROPHECIES 


OF 


DANIEL,  ESDRAS,  AND  ST.  JOHN. 


J\1r.  Fr ere  has  recently  published  a  work, 
intitled  A  combined  view  of  the  prophecies  of 
Daniely  Esdras,  and  St.  John  ;  which  is  writ- 
ten in  a  most  pleasing  spirit  of  seriousness,  and 
which  contains  many  sensible  and  judicious 
observations.  In  this  work  he  has  honoured 
me  with  a  very  large  share  of  his  notice  :  and 
since  he  has  combated  many  of  my  leading 
positions  which  I  believe  to  be  right,  and  since 
he  has  attempted  to  establish  various  leading 
positions  of  his  own  which  appear  to  me  to  be 
wrong ;  since  morever  his  work  has  naturally 
attracted  a  considerable  degree  of  attention, 
and  since  in  the  present  awful  times  we  can 
never  too  cautiously  guard  against  errors  in 
prophetic  exposition :  I   have  thought  it  ad- 


23 


viseable  to  take  this  opportunity  of  making  a 
few  remarks  on  his  publication. 

I.  Mr.  Frere  dwells  largely  on  the  neces- 
sity of  maintaining,  that  all  the  prophetic 
writings  are  formed  on  one  consistent  plan ; 
and  he  requires  as  a  point  absolutely  indispen- 
sable, that  the  various  synchronisms  of  the 
Apocalypse  should  be  [abstractedly  established 
by  a  mere  comparison  of  text  with  text,  be- 
fore we  attempt  to  apply  any  predictions  tp 
historical  events. 

In  both  these  points  I  heartily  agree  with 
him,  and  I  think  his  observations  very  just 
and  sensible :  but  I  see  not,  what  right  he  has 
to  claim  any  particular  merit  or  originality 
in  the  advocating  of  tliem ;  and  I  can  still  less 
perceive,  why  he  should  strongly  insinuate  by 
implication,  that  I  have  neglected  the  points 
in  question,  and  that  he  has  happily  perfo7in€d 
what  I  had  unhappily  omitted  to  perform. 
My  three  works  on  the  1 260  daysy  on  the  re- 
storation of  Isi^aelj  and  on  the  seventy  weeks, 
Jointly  form  a  single  connected  composition 
(as  I  have  always  wished  the  public  to  consi- 
der them)  ;  which  rests  on  the  sole  basis,  that 
all  the  prophetic  writings  are  formed  on  one 
harmonious  plan  :  and  the  three  iirst  cliapters 
of  my  Dissertation  on  the  1260  days  are  en- 
tirely devoted  to  the  abstract  establishment  of 
I  "^nchronisms    and    other   closelv   connected 


i 


( I 


4 


^i^ 


vaMetMnaltM'Mm n  ■--iirifMiiiiiiiiifflfl 


%} 


24 

particulars,  without  any  further  reference  to 
the  accomplishment  of  prophecy  than  what 
could  not  be  avoided.  In  such  a  view  of  the 
subject  however,  and  in  such  an  arrangement, 
I  never  thought  of  claiming  any  originality. 
I  merely  did  what  Mede  had  done  before  me, 
and  what  Mr.  Frere  has  very  properly  done 
after  me.  How  far  we  have  each  succeeded^ 
in  shewing  the  harmony  of  the  prophetic 
writings,  and  in  abstractedly  establishing  the 
apocalyptic  synchronisms,  is  quite  another 
matter:  we  may  have  failed^  or  we  may 
have  been  fortunate :  but,  at  any  rate,  we 
have  all  equally  made  the  attempt.  Hence  I 
cannot  see,  what  right  Mr.  Frere  has,  to  de- 
scribe himself  as  exclusively  making  the  pro- 
phetic writings  an  object  of  scientific  research, 
and  to  represent  his  own  mode  of  interpreta- 
tion as  analogical  to  the  strict  method  of  the 
Newtonian  plan  of  philosophizing :  while  his 
predecessors  are  exhibited,  as  writing  without 
regard  to  any  definite  system  ;  and  are  thence 
compared  to  those  more  early  philosophers, 
who  sought  to  account  for  the  inotions  of  the 
heavenly  bodies  on  principles  not  sufficiently 
simple  and  comprehensive  **.  Of  such  remarks 
I  discern  not  the  justice  or  propriety. 

II,  The  arrangement  of  the  Apocalypse, 


*  See  pp.  1,  2,  3.  et  alibi. 


which  J  endeavoured  abstractedly  to  establish 
before  I  applied  any  part  of  its  prophecies  to 
historical  facts,  was  this. 

The  seven  seals  follow  each  other  in  regular 
thronological  order y  commencing  from  abont 
the  time  when  the  apostle  wrote.     The  last 
seal  ushers  in  a  short  silence  of  half  an  hour ; 
and  then  introduces  the  seven  trumpetSy  all  of 
which  are  comprehended  within  the  period  of 
the  last  seal.     The  seven  trumpets  also  follow 
each  other  in  regular  chronological  succession: 
andy  as  they  are  introduced  by  and  compre- 
hended  within  the  last  seal ;  so,  in  like  manner^ 
the  last  trumpet  introduces  and  comprehends 
the  seven  vials.     Tfiese  seven  vials,  analogi" 
cally  to  the  seven  seals  and  the  seven  trumpets,^ 
likewise  follow  each  other  in  regular  chrono-- 
logical   succession.     But    a   remarkable  and 
definite  period  is  specified  in  the  Apocalypse, 
ivhich  had  previously  been  specified  by  Daniel, 
This  comprehends   the  term  of  1260  days  : 
and  the  question  is,  how  it  ought  abstractedly 
to  be  arranged  with  reference  to  the  three  sep- 
tenaries   of  the  seals,  the  trumpets,  and  the 
vials.       The    arrangement  of  it,    which  I 
adopted,  teas  as  follows  :  it  commences  at  the 
beginning  of  the  fifth  trumpet,  which  is  other- 
icise  described  as  the  first  woe ;  and  it  termin- 
ates at  the  be  ginning  of  the  seventh  vial. 

To  repeat  the  arguments,  by  which  I  sought 


> 


I 


'I.' 


fi 


,  f    n 


ll 


28 

to 'establish  such  a  scheme,  were  plainly  su- 
perfluous: I  need  only  observe,  that  the  scheme 
was  marked  out  abstractedly y  before  any  use 
was  made  of  it  in  the  ivay  of  exposition. 

The  arrangement,  which  Mr.  Frere  advo- 
cates, differs  widely  from  the  precedhig  one : 
though  he,  like  myself,  attempts  very  properly 
to  establish  it  uhstractedhjy  before  he  applies 
any  of  the  prophecies  to  historical /ac(*.  His 
proposed  arrangement  is  this. 

The  seven  seals  follow  each  other  in  regU" 
iar  chronological  order.  The  seven  trumpets 
also  follow  each  otlier  in  regidar  chronological 
order.  But  the  seven  seals  and  the  seven 
trumpets  run  parallel  to  each  other  in  two 
distinct  lines y  commencing  from  the  same  his* 
torical  point.  The  earthquake,  on  this  princi- 
pie,  which  takes  place  under  the  sixth  sealy  is 
the  same  event  as  the  earthquake  of  the  sixth 
trumpet :  and  the  seventh  seal  and  the  seventh 
trumpet  both  commence  exactly  at  the  same 
point  of  time.  HencCy  as  the  seven  vials  are 
all  compehended  under  and  mtr^oduced  by 
the  seventh  trumpety  they  are  all  compre- 
hended under  and  introduced  by  the  se- 
venth seal  likewise.  These  vials  follow  each 
other  in  regidar  chronological  order.  The 
period  of  the  1260  days  commences  at  an 
apocalyptically  unspecified  point  between 
the  fourth  and  ffth  trumpets  oi'  betu^een  the 


\i 


1^ 


f 


n 

fourth  and  fifth  seals :  but  it  terminates  at  the 
apocalyptically  specified  point  of  the  beginning 
of  the  seventh  trumpet  or  seventh  seal  *. 

Now  it  is  sufficiently  manifest,  as  Mr. 
Frere  perfectly  well  knows,  that,  if  either  of 
these  abstract  arrangements  can  be  shevra 
to  be  erroneous,  the  whole  interpretation 
built  upon  it  will  be  untenable  as  a  regular 
system;  though  particular  expositions  may 
very  possibly  be  right,  more  however  in  that 
case  from  good  luck  than  from  their  having 
emanated  out  of  ajvrmly  established  general 
plan.  Thus,  if  Mr.  Frere's  abstract  arrange- 
ment be  proved  to  be  erroneous,  his  scheme 
of  interpretation  will  immediately  fall  to  the 
ground,  though  by  good  fortune  he  may  here 
and  there  be  right  in  his  view  of  insulated  par- 
ticulars. The  same  remark  applies  of  course  to 
my  own  abstract  arrangement :  if  that  can  be 
over-thrown,  the  general  plan  of  interpretation 
built  upon  it  will  be  worth  just  nothing. 

The  two  arrangements  standing  in  decided 
opposition  to  each  other,  whatever  tends  to 
disprove  the  one  will  just  so  much  pave  the 
way  for  the  reception  of  the  other :  and  in-' 
deed  it  is  almost  impossible  to  produce  an  argu- 
ment against  either,  without  at  the  same  time 


\}ii 


f , 


*  See  the  chart  prefixed  to  Mr.  Frere's  work,  where  this 
system  is  very  lumijioiisly  exhibited. 


ill 


17 


29 

producino:  an  argument  in  favour  of  its  rival. 
My  plan  therefore  will  be,  in  some  measure  at 
least,  to  consider  them  jointly. 

1.  What,  I  think,  must  first  strike  the  cau- 
tious reader  is  this  :  my  arrangement  is  per- 
fectly analogical;  Mr.  Frere's  arrangement 
is  perfectly  the  rever&e  of  being  analogical. 

According  to  my  theory,  as  the  seven  vials 
are  all  introduced  by  the  seventh  trumpet,  and 
as  the  two  septenaries  of  the  trumpets  and  the 
vials  thus  form  a  regular  chronological  series ; 
so  the  seven  trumpets  are  all  introduced  by 
the  seventh  seal,  and  the  two  septenaries  of 
the  seals  and  the  trumpets  form  in  like  man- 
ner a  regular  chronological  series:  and  again, 
as  the  expiration  of  the  1260  days  is  marked 
by  one  of  the  great  apocalyptic  epochs;  so  the 
commencement  of  that  period  is  marked  by 
another  great  apocalyptic  epoch. 

But,  according  to  Mr.  Frere's  theory, 
though  the  seven  vials  are  all  introduced  by 
the  seventh  tioimpet,  and  though  the  two  seji- 
tenaries  of  the  trumpets  and  the  vials  thus 
form  a  regular  chronological  series ;  yet  the 
seventh  seal  does  not  similarly  introduce  the 
seven  trumpets,  and  the  two  septenaries  of  the 
seals  and  the  trumpets  do  not  form  a  regular 
chronological  series,  but  (wholly  nnlike  the 
two  septenaries  of  tlie  trumpets  and  the  vials) 
they  run  parallel  to  each  other :  and  again. 


29 

though  the  1260  days  are  made  to  terminate 

with  one  of  the  great  apocalyptic  epochs;  yet 

they  are  made  not  to  commence  with  one,  but, 

on  the  contrary,  they  are  supposed  to  begin 

at  an  unspecified  point  which  occurs  between 

two  of  the  great  apocalyptic  epochs. 

In  this  arrangement,  the  analogy,  which 

even  a  good  writer,  much  more  therefore  an 

inspired  writer,  might  be  presumed  to  maintain 

in  order  to  his  being  intelligible,  is  altogether 

violated:   and   the  consequence   is,  that  we 

feel  ourselves  treading  quite  upon  uncertain 

ground.     For,  if  one  author  chooses,  in  his 

interpretation,  to  make  the  trumpets  and  vials 

successive,  but  the  seals  and  trumpets  parallel ; 

another  may,  with  at  least  as  much  plausibi* 

lity  assert,  that  they  are  all  parallel,  and  call 

upon  Mr.  Frere  to  shew  why  two  of  the  sep- 

tenaries  should  be  parallel  and  two  successive: 

and,  if  this  other  author  may  make  such  an 

assertion ;  a  third  again  may  say,  that  the 

seals  and  the  trumpets  are  successive,  but  that 

the  trumpets  and  the  vials  are  parallel.     In 

short,  if  once  we  depart  from  the  obvious 

analogical  arrangement,  which  I  have  adopted, 

and  to  which  the  Avhole  prophecy  itself  leads 

us  very  unequivocally ;  we  may  ring  as  many 

changes  as  we  please,   and  all  with  equal 

emolument,  on  the  three  apocalyptic  septen. 
aries.  ^ 


■> 


/•l 


A 


t"    I 


so 

2.  Here  however  Mr.  Frere  will  say,  that, 
however  useful  analogy  may  be  in  ite  place, 
the  arrangement  of  the  three  septenaries  must 
be  determined  by  certain  inienial  marks  which 
may  be  observed  in  the  text  itself,  and  that 
the  same  mode  of  classification  must  be 
adopted  in  the  apocalyptic  arrangement  of  the 
1260  days.  To  this  I  readily  assent,  and  feel 
myself  not  unprepared  to  meet  him  on  such 

ground. 

(I.)  We  will  begin  with  discussing  the 
arrangement  of  the  seals  and  the  trumpets. 

When  I  was  studying  the  subject  previous 
to  vrriting  upon  it,  I  observed,  as  Mr.  Frere 
and  almost  every  other  commentator  has  ob- 
served, that  the  seven  seals  are  plainly  repre- 
sented by  the  prophet  as  succeeding  each 
other  in  regular  chronological  order.  I  fur- 
ther observed,  that  all  the  six  first  seals  are 
described  as  ushering  in  certain  prominent 
events :  but,  when  I  came  to  the  seventh,  I 
found  that  it  merely  introduced  w^hat  St.  John 
styles  silence  in  heaven  about  the  space  of  halj 
an  hour.  Such  being  the  case,  I  could  only 
view  this  short  silence  as  being  a  brief 
period  of  stillness  preparatory  to  what  may 
be  esteemed  the  real  and  proper  contents  of 
tlie  seventh  seal.  Reading  forward,  therefore, 
J  observed,  that  the  short  silence  was  immedi- 
ately followed  by  the  successive  sounding  of 


HI 


^ 


31 

seven  trumpets.  Hence,  with  Made  and  I 
believe  every  other  interpreter,  I  naturall) 
concluded,  that  the  seventh  seal  introduced 
and  comprehended  the  septenary  of  the  trum- 
pets. For,  unless  this  arrangement  were 
adopted,  I  perceived,  that  the  seventh  seal, 
unlike  its  six  predecessors,  would  introduce 
just  nothing  at  all,  save  a  brief  period  of 
perfect  inaction.  My  supposition  therefore 
was,  that  the  troubles  figuratively  described 
under  the  sixth  seal  were  to  be  succeeded  by 
a  period  of  silent  inaction,  which  the  seventh 
seal  should  introduce  previous  to  the  sounding 
of  the  seven  trumpets. 

Such  an  arrangement  however  does  not 
satisfy  Mr.  Frere :  and  he  even  charges  me 
with  exhibiting  a  period  wholly  unknown  t9 
St.  John^  simply  because  I  place  the  half 
hour's  silence  exactly  where  the  apostle  Iiim- 
Belf  had  placed  it ;  to  wit,  immediately  after 
the  opening  of  the  seventh  seal  and  immedi- 
ately before  the  sounding  of  the  first  trumpet  *. 
Let  us  see  then,  by  what  arguments  he  would 
substitute  liis  own  arrangement  for  that  which 
I  have  adopted  from  Mede  and  our  best  com- 
mentators. 

As  the  seven  trumpets  are  supposed  by  Mr. 

♦  Contents,  p.  xiiL    Work,  p.  71.     See  Rev.  viii.  1,2. 
6.7. 


i 


I  i 


r    •! 


') 


M 


I  t   * 


i    i. 


Frerd  to  run  parallel  to  the  seven  seals,  in- 
stead of  being  successive  to  theni ;  and  as  he 
pronounces  the  seventh  seal  to  commence  syn- 
chronically  with  the  seventh  trumpet  and  to 
comprehend  the  very  same  events :  we  are  of 
course  prepared  to  expect,  that  the  contents 
of  the  seventh  seal  will  perfectly  resemble  the 
contents  of  the  seventh  trumpet.     On  turning 
to  the  text  then,  we  read  of  the  seventh  seal, 
that,  when  the  lamb  had  opened  ity  there  was 
SILENCE  IN  HEAVEN  about  the  space  of  half  an 
hour:  but  of  the  seventh  trumpet  we  read, 
that,  when  it  was  sounded,  there  were  great 
VOICES  IN  HEAVEN  *.     Now,  as  a  dead  silence 
in  heaven  is  the  very  reverse  of  great  voices 
in  heaven,  it  being  obviously  impossible  that 
silence  and  noise  should  sy^ichronically  coexist 
in  the  same  place^  Mr.  Frere  found  that  the 
mute  seventh  seal  could  never  be  made  to 
coincide  with  the  vocal  seventh  trumpet,  un- 
less it  were  managed  on  a  totally  different 
principle   from   what  it  had    hitherto   been 
managed.    In  order  therefore  to  make  them 
coincide,  he  has  recourse  jointly  to  argument 
and  to  criticism. 

The  argument,  when  thrown  into  regular 
syllogistic  form,  is  this. 

The  seven  trumpets  run  parallel  to  the  seven 


•  Rev.  viii.  1.  xi.  t^. 


33 

seals.     Therefore  the  earthquake  of  the  sixth 
seal  must  be  the  same  as  the  earthquake  of  the 
sixth  trumpet*.     Since  therefore  these  two 
earthquakes  are  the  same,   whatever  follotcs 
the  one  must  likewise  follow  the  other.     But 
the  time  of  God's  wrath  with  various  aicful 
concomitants  follows  the  earthquake  of  the 
sixth  trumpet,  and  is  introduced  by  the  seventh 
trumpet  f.     The  great  day  also  of  the  Lamb's 
tcrath  with  various  awful  concomitants  follows 
the  eartliquake  of  the  sixth  seal.     Therefore 
the  day  of  the  Lamb's  wrath  with  its  various 
auful  concomitants,  being  introduced  by  the 
seventh  trumpet,  must  be  introduced  also  by 
the  seventh  seal.     Consequently,  the  real  con- 
tents of  the  seventh  seal  are  not  the  half-hour's 
silence,  but  the  events  detailed  in  Rev.  vi. 
12—17,  subsequent  to  ^Ae  word  Earthquake. 
In  other  words,  the  seventh  seal  does  Hot  com^ 
me7ice  in  Rev.  viii.  1,  but  in  Rev.  vi.  12,  with 
the  words  And  the  sun  became  black. 

It  requires  little  dialectical  acumen  to  per- 
ceive, that  this  whole  argument  is  built  upon 
a  glarmg-  petitio  principii.  The  basis  of  it  is 
an  assumption  of  the  very  point  which  ought 
to  have  been  proved,  namely  the  parallelism 
of  the  seals  and  the  tmmpets.    But,  unless 

*  Rev.  vi.  12.  xi.  13, 
t  Rev.  XI.  18.  comp,  with  ver.  IS,  14,  15, 

D 


At 


1 


■^    I 

U 


* 


•// 


34 

this  be  proved,  Mr.  Frere  has  no  right  to  say, 
that  tlie  earthquake  of  the  sixth  trumpet  is  the 
same  event  as  the  earthquake  of  the  sixth  seaL 
And,  if  he  has  no  right  to  make  such  an  asser- 
tion without  first  proving  the  parallelism,  Ihert 
all  the  res-t  of  the  argiunent  plainly  falls  to  the 

ground. 

This  illogical  argument  has  necessarily  led 
Mr.  Frere  into  the  criticinni,  which  I  have 

just  alluded  to. 

If  Ihe  contents  of  the  seventh  seal  are  lo  be 
sought  in  Rev.  vi.  12—17,  beginning  with  the 
words  And  the  nun:  then  Rev.  viii.  I.  must 
speak,  not  of  the  commencement  of  the  seventh 
seal,  but  of  its  termination.     In  this  manner 
accordingly,  which  indeed  is  absolutely  neces- 
sar)'  to  his  proposed  arrangement,  Mr.  Frere 
does  understand  Rev.  viii.  I.     He   tells  us, 
that  Rev.  viii.  begins  xcith  an  intimation,  that 
ihe  period  of  the  seventh  seal  is  passed*:  and 
he  afterwards  censures  Mede  and  others  of  his 
predecessors  for  not  having  miderstood,  that 
the  opening  of  the  seventh  seal  n-as  not  men- 
Honed  till  the  end  instead  of  the  beginning  of 
the  period  to  which  it  referredf. 

Now  it  may  be  observed  on  this  criticism, 
that  if  Rev.  viii.  opens  with  an  intimation  that 
the  period  of  the  seventh  seal  is  passed,  the  in- 


*  P.  15. 


■y  P.  -i7.  See  also  p-  71. 


S5 

timation  must  doubtless  be  contained  in  the 
words  When  he  had  opened  the  seventh  seal. 
All  therefore  that  we  have  to  do  is  to  inquire, 
both  on  the  ordinary  principles  of  language 
and  on  the  general  context  of  the  passage, 
what  is  meant  by  the  words  in  question. 

In  common  convei-sation,  when  we  speak 
of  a  man  opening  a  book,  we  mean  that  he  is 
beginning  to  read  it,  not  that  he  has  Jinished 
reading  it ;  because  we  usually  open  a  book 
at  the  commencement  of  our  perusing  it,  and 
«hut   it  at  the   conclusion   of   our    perusal. 
What  St.  John  indeed  saw  was  a  roll,  and 
not  a  modern  book:  but  this  will  make  no 
material  difference ;  for,  if  we  had  been  read- 
ing out  of  a  roll,  we  could  scarcely  be  said  to 
open  or  unfold  the  identical  part  which  had 
occupied  our  attention  precisely  when  we  had 
Jinished  reading ;  we  should  rather,  I  appre- 
hend, tmfold  the  roll,  when  we  began  to  read. 
Hence,  in  ordinary  conversation,  if  we  re- 
marked, that  a  man  opened  a  book  or  unfolded 
a  roll ;  few  probably  would  understand  «s  to 
mean  by  such  an  expression,  that  the  man 
had  been  diligently  reading  out  of  the  book  or 
roll  for  the  last  hour,  and  that  now  he  had 
Jinished  his  task.     We  usually,  in  short,  say, 
that  a  man  opens  a  book  when  he  begins  to 
read  it,  and  shuts  it  when  he  has  done  reading; 
not  that  he  shuts  the  book  when  he  begins  to 

D  2 


/( 


/li 


!  m 


^  , 


I     ' 


I' 


)i 


1 


^ 


,  1 


ill 


fl 


1  ■*  ' 


'i 


36 

read,  and  opens  it  for  the  first  time  when  he 
Jinishes.  Thus  it  appears,  that  our  common 
colloquial  idiom  is  decidedly  against  Mr. 
Frere's  proposed  interpretation  of  the  place ; 
namely,  that  the  expression  When  he  had 
opened  the  seventh  seal  contains  an  intima- 
tion that  the  period  of  the  seventh  seal  is 

PASSED. 

It  is  useful  however  in  the  elucidation  of 
difficult  or  ambiguous  passages  to  attend  to 
the  context :  let  us  see  therefore,  whether  the 
context  will  happily  lead  us  to  the  right  un- 
derstanding of  the  present  place.  The  phrase 
When  he  had  opened  (Gr.  ire  fjvot^i)  occurs 
no  less  than  seven  times  in  St.  John's  account 
of  the  seven  seals.  Now,  whatever  ambiguity 
there  may  be  in  the  phrase  itself^  as  it  occurs 
seven  times  in  a  continued  and  plainly  con- 
nected narrative,  sound  criticism  requires,  that, 
as  we  understand  it  one  place,  so  we  should 
likewise  understand  it  in  all  the  other  six.  If 
therefore,  as  applied  to  one  seal,  it  means  the 
commencement  of  that  seal;  we  may  safely 
venture  to  conclude,  that,  as  applied  to  the 
other  six,  it  analogously  means  their  several 
commencements  :  and  vice  versa,  if,  as  applied 
to  one  seal,  it  means  the  termination  of  thai 
seal ;  we  may  no  less  safely  conclude,  that,  as 
applied  to  the  other  six,  it  means  their  several 
terminations.     In  six   instances  out  of  the 


S7 

seven  then,  to  wit  in  the  cases  of  the  six  first 
seals,  the  expression,  Mr.  Frere  himself  being 
judge,  denotes  the  commencement  of  a  seal: 
yet  does  he  assure  us,  that,  in  the  case  of  the 
seventh  seal,  it  assumes  the  directly  opposite 
sense   of  termination.     Here    we    have   two 
diametrically  opposite  senses  given  of  the  same 
phrase,  as  it  occurs  in  one  continued  narra- 
tive :  the  expression  lolicn  he  opened  thejirsty 
second,   third,  fourth,  fifth,   or  sixth,   seal, 
means  the   commencement  of  each  of  those 
seals ;  but  the  expression  when  he  opened  the 
seventh  seal  means  the  termination   of  that 
seal,  for  Rev.  viii.   (if  we  may  believe  Mr. 
Frere)   begins  ivith   an   intimation   that   the 
period  of  the  seventh  seal  is  passed.     That 
the  phrase  ought  to  be  interpreted  homogen- 
eously, is  sufficiently  clear :  but  I  see  not,  how 
we  are  to  ascertain  its  real  meaning,  except 
by  adverting  to  its  use  in  ordinary  conversa- 
tion.    Now  that  has  determined  it  to  denote 
commencement ;  a  very  good  sense,  for  Mr. 
Frere   himself  has   so   interpreted  it   in   six 
instances  out  of  seven.     Hence  I  conclude^ 
tliat  Rev.  viii.  so  iar  from  beginning  with  an 
intimation  that  the  period  of  the  seventh  seal 
is  PASSED,  does  in  truth  begin  with  an  intima- 
tion that  it  is  now  commencing. 

The  reader  will  probably  now  be  inclined 
to  think,  that  Mr.  Frere's  arrangement  of  the 


i\y 


i 


A 


*  I 


m 


(\ 


t 


38 

seals  and  the  trumpets  is  untenable,  and  that 
the  jiroper  arrangement  of  tliem  is  that  which 
I  had  adopted  from  Mede  and  others  of  my 
predecessors.      But,  if  Mr.  Frere's  arrange- 
ment be  overthrown,  tlie  interpretation  which 
depends  upon  it  falls  jointly  to  the  ground. 
Hence  the  two  septenaries  of  the  seals  and 
the  trumpets  cannot  relate  to  the  two  parallel 
lines  of  Roman  history  in  the  west  and  in  the 
east:  hence  the  earthquake  of  the  sixth  seal 
cannot  mean  the  French  revolution,  but  must 
shadow^  out  some  event  which  took  place  many 
centuries  before  :  and  hence  the  wrath  of  the 
Lamb  under  the  i'?a:^/i  seal,  erroneously  placed 
by  Mr.  Frere  under  the  seventh  seal,  cannot 
have  been  excited  by  the  same  event  as  that 
which  provokes  the  wrath  of  God  under  the 
Bcventh  trumpet. 

(2.)  Let  us  now  attend  to  the  arrangement 
of  the  trumpets  and  the  vials. 

Here  I  have  the  good  fortune  perfectly  to 
agree  with  IVlr.  Frere.  Before  his  work  was 
published,  I  had  demonstrated  with  mathe- 
matical certainty  from  the  internal  evidence 
afforded  by  the  text  itself,  that  the  seventh 
trumpet  introduces  and  comprehends  all  the 
Beven  vials.  In  this,  both  Mr.  Frere  and  Mr. 
Cuninghame  acquiesce,  though  the  latter  un- 
fortunately mars  the  arrangement  by  sup- 
posing the  vials  to  run  parallel  mstead  of 


■■-««««;  ,1 


39 

being  successive  to  each  other.  To  repeat 
therefore  the  demonstration,  would  be  plainly 
superfluous:  we  are  all  agreed,  wliere  iu"- 
deed  there  cannot  be  a  shadow  of  doubt,  that 
the  seven  vials  are  introduced  by  an  J  com- 
prehended within  the  sounding  of  the  seventh 
trumpet. 

(3.)  This  now  fully  established  point  will 
greatly  assist  us,  in  the  proper  synchronical 
arrrangement  of  the  1260  days:  and,  for 
want  of  due  attention  to  it,  both  Mr.  Frere  and 
Mr.  Cuninghame  have  erred. 

The  former  of  these  respectable  writers, 
after  properly  remarking  that  an  abstract  ar- 
rangement of  the  apocalyptic  synclironisms 
must  be  obtained  from  the  internal  evidence 
afforded  by  the  text  itself  before  any  attempt 
be  made  to  apply  the  prophecies  to  historical 
facts,  proceeds  to  intimate  that  I  have  failed 
to  attend  to  this  sound  canon,  merely  because 
I  do  not  admit  the  1260  days   to  end  at  the 
conunencement    of    the    seventh    trumpet  *. 
One  might  imagine  from  the  mode  in  which 
he  speaks  of  my  supposed  mistake,  that  I  had 
never  heard  of  snch  an  arrangement  as  that 
which  makes  the  commencement  of  the  se- 
venth trumpet  mark   the  termination  of  the 
1260  days.     This,  however,  is  an  error  on 


'i  M 


li 


'1' 


Pp.  44,  50,  C58. 


gftji^giMCilMB 


i 


fj 


!i# 


40 

his  part;  an  error,  Mhich  the  reader  may* 
easily  correct  by  referring  to  my  work  on  the 
sii1)ject.  I  did  not  make  tlie  1260  days  ter- 
minate with  the  commencement  of  the  seventh 
via!,  because  I  was  ignorant  that  an  attempt 
had  been  made  by  Mede  and  other  writers  to 
estabUsh  their  synchronical  termination  with 
the  commencement  of  the  seventh  trumpet : 
but  I  adopted  my  own  arrangement,  because 
I  was  decidedly  convinced  that  that  of  Mede 
was  erroneous.  Mr.  Frere  indeed  speaks  of 
]Mede's  arrangement  as  being  estabhshed  with 
such  absohite  demonstration,  as  to  admit  of 
no  further  controversy;  and  thence  blames 
my  alleged  inconsistency  in  supposing  the 
seventh  trumpet  to  introduce  the  French  re- 
volution, while  I  nevertheless  esteem  the  end 
of  the  1260  days  to  be  yet  future.  But  to 
this  charge  of  inconsistency  I  beg  leave  to  de- 
cline subscribing.  I  certainly  think,  that  the 
French  revolution  was  that  tremendous  tliird 
woe  wliicli  the  seventh  trumpet  was  destined 
to  introduce ;  and  in  this  I  agree  with  almost 
every  modern  expositor,  though  there  may 
be  some  minor  variations  in  our  specific 
dates:  but  I  do  not  make  the  1260  days  end 
at  that  epoch,  because  I  flatly  deny  that  they 
have  ever  been  abstractedly  proved  to  termi- 
nate with  the  commencement  of  the  seventh 
trumpet,  as  Mr.  Frere  too  hastily  would  per- 


41 

suade  us  is  the  case.  On  the  contrary,  as  it 
may  be  easily  demonstrated  that  the  1260 
days  do  not  terminate  with  the  commence- 
ment of  the  seventh  trumpet,  and  I  am  fully 
persuaded  that  the  seventh  trumpet  began  to 
sound  when  it  introduced  the  woe  of  the 
French  revolution ;  I,  on  that  very  account, 
even  independent  of  various  other  reasons, 
feel  myself  compelled  to  maintain,  that  the 
1260  days  did  not  terminate  at  the  beginning 
of  the  French  revolution. 

When  Mr.  Frere  contends  that  Mede  has 
proved  the  end  of  tlie  1260  days  to  synchro- 
nize with  the  beginning  of  the  seventh  trum- 
pet, he  quite  forgets  to  add,  tlial  Mede  like- 
xoise  assert  the   end  of  that  period  to  syn- 
chronize with  the  beginning  of  the  seventh 
vial.     The  fact  was  this :  that  great  expositor 
clearly  saw,  that  the  six  first^  vials  and  tlie 
commencing  plague  of  the  seventh  must  in- 
evitably be  included  within  the  period  of  the 
1260  days.     Hence  he  perceived,  that  the 
1260  days  must  necessarily  terminate  with 
the    commencement    of    the     seventh   vial: 
and  here  accordingly,  like  myself  (a  point 
wholly  overlooked  by  Mr.  Freie),   he  places 
their  termination.     Thus  far  all  was  riglit : 
but,  unhappily  mistaking  ^as  Mr.  Frere^has 
done  after  him)   the  meaning  of  the  mighty 
angel's    declaration    in    tlie    tenth    chapter 


M 


'I' 


'k 


n\  ! 


[i] 


1*1 


/.' 


42 

of    the    Apocalj-pse  *,    he    persuaded    him- 
^If  that  the   1260    days   likewise  terminat- 
ed  with  the  conimencement  of  the  geventli 
trumpet.      Under   this  view   of  the   subject, 
which    Mr.  Frere    has     very    injudiciously 
omitted  to  state,  no  resource  was  left  him  but 
to  make  the  seventh  trumpet  and  the  seventh 
vial  exactly  synchronical :   and  such  an  ar- 
ran^-cment  of  course  compelled  him  to  place 
all  the  six  first  vials  anterior  to  the  sounding 
of  the  seventh  trumpet;    in  order  that  he 
might  thus  place   them,  where  he  saw  they 
mvst  be   placed,    within   the  period  of  the 
1260  days.      This   was   the  real  ground  of 
:Mede's  arrangement,  which  Mr.  Frere  incau- 
tiously deems  to  have  been  established  beyond 
a  possil)ility  of  contradiction.    Mede  perceived 
that  tlie  six  first  vials  could  not  but  be  in- 
cluded within  the  1260  days:  he  further  per- 
ccived  from  such  incontrovertible  premises, 
that  the  1260  davs  nuist  inevitably  terminate 
M  ith  tlic  commencement  of  the  seventh  vial : 
but  he  aho  thought  he  had  reason  to  imagine, 
that  they  terminate  with  the  conunencement 
of  the  seventh  trumpet:    lience,   as  I   have 
just  observed,  he  was  compelled  to  make  the 
seventh  trumpet  and  the  seventh  vial  perfectly 
svuchrunical ;    and  hence    he   was   likewise 


l»'  i 


*  Rev.  X.  6,  7. 


43 

compelled  to  place  all  the  six  first  vials  before 
the  sounding  of  the  seventh  trumpet. 

Now  it  is  abundantly  manifest,  that  the 
whole  of  this  theory  is  at  once  overturned 
by  the  proof,  that  all  the  seven  vials  are 
poured  out  after  the  seventh  trumpet  begins 
to  sound  ;  a  point,  which  Mr.  Frere  and  Mr, 
Cuninghame  contend,  as  strenuously  as  I  do, 
to  have  been  established  past  contradiction. 
For,  if  all  the  seven  vials  are  posterior  to  the 
commencement  of  the  seventli  trumpet,  and 
if  the  six  first  vials  and  the  commencing 
point  of  the  seventh  must  needs  be  cornpre' 
hended  within  the  period  of  the  1260  days: 
then  of  course  the  1260  days,  the  expiration 
of  which  Mede  fully  allows  to  synchronize 
with  the  beginning  of  the  seventh  vial,  can- 
not also  synchronize  with  the  beginning  of 
the  seventh  trumpet;  because  all  the  seven 
vials,  and  therefore  much  more  the  last  of 
them,  are  now  confessedly  posterior  to  the  be- 
ginning of  the  seventh  trumpet. 

The  merest  tyro  in  logic  will  readily  per- 
ceive, that  the  only  way,  in  which  Mr.  Frere 
can  extricate  himself  from  the  toils  in  which 
he  is  hampered,  is  to  deny  a  synchronism 
alike  maintained  by  Mede  and  myself; 
namely,  that  the  six  first  vials  and  the  com-' 
mencing  point  of  the  seventh  must  neces- 
sarily be  included  within  tlie  1260  days :  for, 

t 


I 


I"    I 

m 


r 
if 


..     ■>  J  ..— aOei 


'^ 


if 


\  . 


'It 

I 


ki 


I   .■' 


44 

if  that  synchronism  be  allowed,  then  of  course 
the  two  positions,  that  the  1260  days  expire 
at  the  heginnmg  of  the  seventh  trumpet^  and 
that  all  the  seven  vials  are  introduced  by  the 
seventh  tnnnpet,  cannot  be  both  held  ;  one  or 
other  of  them  Mr.  Frere  must  inevitably 
give  up,  because  the  two  cannot  consist  to- 
gether. All  therefore,  which  I  have  to  do 
to  make  tlie  argument  complete,  is  to  prove, 
that  tlie  six  Jirst  vials  and  the  commencing 
point  of  the  seventh  must  necessarily  be  in-- 
eluded  icithin  the  period  of  the  1260  days. 
This,  accordingly,  I  now  undertake  to  do. 

(a.)  It  has  been  indisputably  demonstrated, 
as  Mr.  Frere  and  Mr.  Cuninohame  both 
ftilly  allow,  that  all  the  seven  vials  are  intro- 
duced by  and  comprehended  within  the 
seventh  trumpet :  whence  of  course  it  fol- 
lows, that  the  effusion  of  all  the  vials  is  pos-^ 
terior  to  the  connnencement  of  the  seventh 
trumpet. 

(i&.)  It  is  also  fully  allowed,  that  the  sack- 
cloth-prophesying of  the  two  witnesses  ex- 
actly synchronizes  from  begiiming  to  end  with 
the  period  of  the  1260  days :  whence  it  obvi- 
ously follows,  that,  whatever  occurs  during 
the  sackcloth-prophesying  of  the  witnesses, 
occurs  also  during  the  period  of  the  1260 
days. 

(( .)  Now  we  are  told,  that  the  witnesses. 


\\ 


*  45 

during  the  days  of  their  prophecy,  have  power 
to  shut  heaven  that  it  rain  not,  and  that  they 
have  likewise  power  over  the  waters  to  turn 
them  into  blood  and  to  smite  the  earth  with 
every  plague  as  often  as  they  w  ill  * :  whence 
it  is  manifest,  that  the  turning  of  the  waters 
into  blood,  and  the  smiting  of  the  earth  w  itii 
every  plague,  are  events  which  occur  during 
the  time  of  the  sackcloth-prophesying  of  tlie 
witnesses. 

(d.)  But  the  sackcloth-propliesying  of  the 
M^itnesses  synchronizes  from  begiiming  to  end 
with  the  period  of  the  1260  days  (§  6.);  and 
the  waters  are  turned  into  blood,  and  the 
earth  is  smitten  w  ith  every  plague  during  the 
time  of  the  sackcloth-prophesying  (§  c.) : 
whence  it  necessarily  follows,  that  the  turning 
of  the  waters  into  blood,  and  the  smitino-  of 
the  earth  with  every  plague,  occur  during  the 
period  of  the  1260  days. 

(e.)  Now  the  seven  vials  are  expressly  said 
to  bring  on  seven  plagues  f  ;  and  they  are 
moreover  all  declared  in  general  to  be  poured 
out  upon  the  earth  J  :  the  earth  therefore  is 
smitten  with  every  plague  by  the  operation  of 
the  seven  vials.  The  second  and  the  third 
vials  moreover  are  said  to  be  specially  poured 
out  on  the  sea  and  the  rivers ;  and  their  po- 

•  Rev.  xi.  6.  t  Rev,  xv.  \,  7,  8. 

t  Rev,  xvi.  1. 


I    m\ 


\ 


I 


:  \ 


1  I 

I 


n 


46 

tency  is  such,  that  the  waters  are  changed 
into  blood  * :  the  waters  are  therefore  changed 
into  blood  by  the  operation  of  the  seven 
vials. 

(f.)  But  we  have  already  seen,  that  the 
w^aters  are  changed  into  blood,  and  that  the 
earth  is  smitten  with  every  plagTie,  during  the 
period  of  the  1260  days  (§  d.)-  and  we  have 
now  seen,  tliat  the  waters  are  also  changed 
into  blood,  and  the  earth  is  also  smitten  with 
every  plague,  by  the  operation  of  tlie  seven 
vials  (§  e.). 

(g-.)  Hence  it  follows,  that  the  six  first 
vials  and  the  commencing  or  operative  point 
of  the  seventh,  which  produces  the  plague  of 
a  great  earthquake,  must  necessarily  be  in- 
cluded within  the  period  of  the  1260  days: 
because  the  identical  events,  which  are  said 
to  occur  during  the  period  of  the  1260  days, 
are  produced  by  the  operation  of  the  vials. 
Hence  moreover  it  follows,  that  the  declara- 
tion Tt  is  dojiCy  which  proceeds  out  of  the 
temple  at  the  commencement  of  the  seventh 
vial,  means,  that  the  period  of  the  1260  days 
4s  finished  f.  Accordingly,  as  the  witnesses 
prophesy  in  sackcloth,  and  as  Babylon  is  more 
or  less  triumphant  during  the  lapse  of  the 
1260  days;  so  we  are  expressly  assured,  thaj)> 


*  Rev  xvi,  S — 7, 


-fj*  Rev.  xvi.  1 7. 


\  \ 


47 

at  the  effusion  of  the  seventh  vial,  and  there- 
fore of  course  not  earlier  except  in  a  very  in- 
ferior sense  *,  great  Babylon  came  in  remem- 
brance before  God  to  gire  unto  Iter  the  cup  of 
the  trine  of  the  fierceness  of  his  wrath  -f.  Hi- 
therto the  witnesses  had  prophesied  more  or 
less  in  sackcloth,  and  Babvlon  had  more  or 
less  been  triumphant :  but  now,  at  the  effu- 
sion of  the  seventh  vial  when  the  1260  davs 
expire,  the  witnesses  cease  to  prophesy  in 
sackcloth,  and  Babylon  receives  the  full  cup 
of  almighty  wrath. 

I  have  now  proved,  that  all  the  six  first 
vials  and  the  commencing  or  operative  point 
of  the  seventh  are  comprehended  within  the 
period  of  the  1260  days,  and  consequcntly 
that  the  1260  days  expire  with  the  voice  and 
the  earthquake  and  the  judgment  of  Babylon 
at  the  commencement  of  the  seventh  vial ;  as 
Mede  clearly  saw,  and  fully  admitted,  many 
years  ago.  But  it  had  already  been  proved, 
to  the  full  satisfaction  of  Mr.  Frcre  himself, 
that  all  the  seven  vials  are  posterior  to  the 
commencement  of  the  seventh  trumpet.  There- 
fore, as  the  1260  days  expire  at  the  com- 


*  In  an  inferior  sense,  Babylon  may  be  said  to  have  come 
up  in  God's  remembrance  at  the  time  of  the  reformation,  and 
again  at  the  time  of  the  French  revolution  ;  but  what  is  here 
meant  is  plainly  the  exterminating  judgment,  described  at 


large  in  Rev.  xviii. 


•J-  Rev.  xvi.  19- 


\ 


III 


f 


t  I' 


48 

mencement  of  the  seventh  vial,  Ihey  cannot 
expire  at  the  commencement  of  the  seventh 
trumpet ;  a  point,  which  Mr.  Frere  unwarily 
supposes  to  have  been  irrefragably  demon- 
stratedy  but  which  in  reality  is  quite  inca- 
pable of  standing  the  test  of  a  close  examina- 
tion. Such  being  the  case,  if  the  seventh 
trumpet  began  to  sound  synchronically  with 
the  French  revolution,  that  very  circumstance 
alone  will  prove,  that  the  1260  days  cannot 
have  expired  in  the  year  1792;  as  Mr.  Frere 
and  Mr.  Cuninghame,  erroneously  even  on 
their  awn  principles,  liave  unadviseably  been 
led  to  contend. 

The  conclusion,  to  which  we  have  been 
brought,  wlioUy  unhinges  Mr.  Frere's  specu- 
lations on  accomplished  prophecy  *.    Judging 

*  Much  has  often  been  said  on  tlie  vanity  of  speculating 
upon  unfulfilled  prophecy,  and  Sir  Isaac  Newton  has  fre- 
qtiently  been  cited  as  reprobating  such  a  humour  :  but  1  have 
never  yet  seen  this  matter  clearly  laid  down ;  and  I  am  con- 
vinced, that  many  largely  deal  out  their  censures  upon  those 
who  do  thus  speculate,  without  at  all  understanding  the 
i'Toufids  on  which  such  censures  are  alone  justifiable.  I 
shall  therefore  lake  tJtm  opportunity  of  saying  a  few  words  on 
tlie  subject. 

As  the  accomplishment  of  prophecy  admits  only  of  tnoral 
demonstration  and  is  incapable  of  mathematical,  all  prospec- 
tive reasoning  on  the  subject  must  of  couise  be  hypothetical. 
Yet,  if  the  principles  be  well  established,  the  conclusions 
nuist  just  as  inevitably  follow  as  the  conclusions  to  which  we 
are  brought  by  a  mathematical  train  of  reasoning  from  any 
acknowledged  dogma.     Supposing  then  a  prophetic  point  of 


49 

that  the  1260  days  expired  in  the  year  1792, 
and  rightly  pronouncing  from  Daniel's  num- 

interpretation  to  be  established  with  as  much  evidence  as  the 
nature  of  it  admits,  whatever  prophetic  particulars  depend  on  it 
must  inevitable/  follow  ;  and,  if  they  be  future,  we  may  hi/po^ 
thefically  foresee  that  they  zmll  follow  without  at  all  justlj 
incurring  the  charge  of  presumption. 

Now  the  only  evidence,  by  which  any  prophetic  point  of 
interpretation  can  be  established,  is,  either  the  declaration  of 
the  prophet  himself  or  the  exact  accomplishment  of  particu^ 
lars  so  far  as  they  have  been  developed  by  him,  or  the^e  two 
taken  conjointly. 

Thus,  to  exemplify  these  positions:  the  apocalyptic  harlot 
is  declared  to  be  the  great  city,  which  in  the  days  of  St.  John 
was  mistress  of  the  whole  w  orld  ;  and,  as  for  the  beast  which 
she  rides,  the  sixth  head  is  declared  to  be  then  in  existence, 
five  are  said  to  have  already  fallen,  and  the  seventh  together 
with  the  ten  horns  is  pronounced  to  be  future.     The  express 
declaration  therefore  fixes  the  compound  symbol  to  the  Ro- 
man empire  :  and  the  actual  rise  of  the  last  head  and  of  the 
ten  horns,  at  a  period  subsequent  to  the  age  of  the  apostle, 
proves  by  the  accomplishment  of  particulars  the  accuracy  of 
that  declaration.     But  the  woman  rides  the  beast  even  to  the 
very  end,  and  is  described  as  flourishing  synchronically  with 
the  last  head  and  the  ten  horns.     Hence  she  cannot  be  Rome 
pagan  at  that  time ;  and  therefore  can  only  he  Rome  papal. 
She  acts  however  precisely  the  same  part  to  St.  John's  ten- 
homed  beast,  that  the  little  horn  does  to  Daniel's  ten-homed 
beast.     Hence  we  may  be  sure,  that  the  horn  and  the  harlot 
symbolize  the  same  power. 

Now,  if  these  points  have  been  established,  all  the  particu- 
lars  w  hich  depend  upon  them  will  have  been  established  like- 
wise. Consequently,  since  it  is  foretold  that  the  beast  and 
the  Ihtle  horn  are  to  be  destioyed  at  the  end  of  the  126*0  days, 
and  since  it  has  been  established  that  by  those  symbols  tho 

E 


li 


n%\ 


f '. 


.'* 


X' 


m^tfuagggugtitiUB^saM 


if 


4  I      Ij 


? 


"  1 


50 

ber  1290  thai  the  infidel  power  will  be  brokeil 
in  Palestine  at  the  close  of  30  years  from  the 

Roman  empire   under  all   its  various  forms  and  the  papal 
cburch   of  Rome   are  intended  ;  Sir  Isaac  Newton  himself 
scruples  not  to  predict  (if  we  choose  to  call  it  predicting)  the 
destruction  both  of  the  Empire  and  of  lh«  Papacy.     Yet  I 
know  not  whv  he  should  be  charged  with   presumption  for 
thus  anticipating  an  unaccomplished  prophecy.     His  reason- 
ing indeed  is  hi/pothetical :  but  grant  his  premises,  and  his 
conclusion  must  inevitably  follow.     In  a  similar  manner,  Mr, 
Mede  hesitates  not  to  predict  the  downfall  of  the  Ottoman 
empire  under  the  sixth  vial.     His  reasoning  again  is  hj/potlte- 
iical:  but  grant  only  his  premises,  iiudyou  must  acknowledge 
the  validity  of  his  conclusion.     My  own  anticipations,  when- 
ever I  have  indulged  in  them,  have  been  regularly  deduced  on 
the  very  same   principles.     Tlius,  as  the  Roman  beast  cer- 
tainly exists  under  his  last  head  during  the   efi'usion  of  the 
vials,  I  could  feel  no  doubt  in  asserting  even  previous  to  the 
event,  that,  under  the  Jifthxhl,  the  power,  which  should  then 
represent  the  last  head,  would  experience  some  great  attack 
upon  its  imperial  authority ;  but  that  it  would  assuredly  recover 
from  that  attack,  because  we  find  it  as  strong  as  ever  under  the 
siith  vial  :  and,  as  the   French  imperial  government  became 
the  repre??entation  of  the  last  head  anterior  to  the  effusion  of 
the  fifth  vial,  1  had  no  hesitation  in  pronouncing  that  the  French 
government  was  the  subject  of  the  prophecy.     Exactly  on  the 
same  principles  again  I  will  predict  (i(  we  must  use  an  offen- 
sive word),  that  the  last  head  of  the  Roman  beast  will  sooner 
or  later  succeed  in  organizing  a  confederacy  of  the  kings  of 
the  Latin  world,  and  that  with  them  he   will  perish  bet>veen 
the  two  seas  ki  Palestine  ;  a  prediction,  in  which  I  perfectly 
agree  with  the  late  Bp.  Horsley  who  said  much  the  same 
thing :  yet',  in  reality  such  an  assertion  is  no  proper  prediction 
either  of  the  bishop's  or  of  mine  j  we  merely  applj/t  what 
t)aniel  and  St,  John  hu\&  foretold.    Our  reasoning,  hke  that 


51 

end  of  the  1266  clays ;  he  is  led  somewhat  ad- 
venturously to  predict,  that  Buonaparte,  whom 

of  Nevi^on  and  Mede,  is   hypothetical     If  the  French  im- 
perial government  became  the  last  head  of  the  Roman  beast 
in  August  1806,  by  the    formal  resignation  of  the  Roman 
Emperorship  on   the   part    of  Austria:  then   all,    that   is 
foretold  of  the  last  head  between  that  period  and  the  present ; 
must  have  been  accomplished  in  the  government  of  France  ; 
and  all  that  is  foretold  of  the  last  head  subsequent  to  the  pre- 
sent time,  must  likewise  hereafter  be  accomplished  in  the 
government  of  France,  unless  tlie  ambulatory  last  head  should 
pass  away  from  that  country.     Now,  that   thi?  will    not  be 
the  case,  may  be   collected  with  sufficient  clearness  :  for  the 
Infidel  kingdom  has  been  shewn  to  be  France  ;  but  the  de- 
struction of  the  Infidel  kingdom  is  perfectly  the  s;ime  as  the 
destruction  of  the  last  head,  both  in  time,  place,  and   circum- 
stances ;  therefore,  as  the  Infidel  kingdom  and  the  la^t  head 
are  now  united,  so  they  will  continue  united  until  the  time 
of  their  joint  destruction.     Such  being  the  case,  whatever  is 
henceforth  predicted  of  the  last  head,  is  in  effect  predicted  of 
the  imperial  government  of  France.     I  again  repeat,   that^ 
grant   only  my    prennses,    my  conclusion  is  inevitable.     At 
the  same  time,  since  my  argument,  like  those  of   Mi\  Mede 
and  Sir  Isaac  Newton,  is  hypothetical ;  disprove  my  premises, 
and  my  conclusion  wiil  of  course  fall  to  the  ground.     If  the 
ten-horned  beast  and  the  little  horn  do  not   me^  the   Ro- 
man empire  and  the  Papacy,   then  mi/  anticipations  will  all 
be  erroneous :  but,  in  that  case,  I  shall  at  least  have  the  com- 
fort of  knowing,   that  Mede  and  Newton  and  Horsley  will 
have  been  equall)  mistaken  in  their  anticipations. 

On  the  whole  then  I  think  it  clear,  that  Sir  Isaac  Newton 
did  not  mean  to  censure  anticipations  thus  regularly  deduced 
liom  established  premises,  because  he  himse/t  scruples  not  to 
advance  such  anticipations  ;  but  to  check  the  vain  humour  of 
lavintT  down   minute  particulars  not  distinct'y  specified  in 

r2 


("ij 


u 


I 


\ 


% 


52 

he  fancies  to  be  a  personal  Antichrist,  will 
perish  in  the  Holy  Land  with  all  his  chivalry 
in  the  now  rapidly  approaching  year  1822,  3, 
He  further  thinks,  that  in  the  same  year  the 
Jews  will  be  restored  :  and  he  asserts,  that  the 
downfall  of  the  Ottonian  empire  about  the 
year  1819  will  effectually  convict  me  of  error. 
Mr.  Cuninghame,   who  likewise  makes  the 
1260  days  expire  in  the  year  1792,  has  pre- 
cisely the    same  view  of   the  subject;  save 
only  that  he  perceives  not,  any  more  than  my- 
self, how  I  am  to  be  confuted  by  the  downfall 
of  the  Turkish  empire.     Of  such  predictions, 
I  need  scarcely  say,  that  I  believe  not  one 
word:  and,  if  the  Ottoman  monarchy  were 
to  be  subverted  to-morrow,  my  system,  what- 
ever may  be  its  merits,  would  be  just  where  it 
was.     As  for  the  restoration  of  the  Jews,  we 


prophecjf.  Thus  I  am  willing  to  hope^  that  Sir  Isaac  would 
not  have  blamed  me  for  asserting  that  the  revolutionary 
goverumeul  of  France,  now  identified  with  the  last  head, 
will,  under  the  yet  future  sixth  \ial,  organize  a  grand  confe- 
deracy of  the  Latin  kings,  and  will  then  perish  in  the  day  of 
Arraageildon  :  but  I  will  grant,  that  he  might  very  reason- 
ably have  censured  me,  if  I  had  undertaken  to  state  the 
name  of  the  individual  wlio  will  be  the  special  agent,  or  to 
tell  how  many  battles  he  will  tight,  or  to  specify  what  precise 
city  he  will  then  make  \iu  capital,  or  to  describe  the  colour 
of  his  uniform. 

These  remarks  may  perhaps  give  a  di<«tinct  idea  of  what  I 
concdivo  to  be  the  real  promise  of  an  interpreter. 


w. 


53 

are  plainly  enough  told,  as  Mede  truly  re- 
marks, that  it  will  commence  at  the  close  of 
the  1260  days,  not  at  the  close  of  the  1290 
days,  where  Mr.  Frere  places  it  without  a 
single  shadow  of  authority :  so  that  the  fact  of 
tlieir  restoration  being  yet  future  is  itself  a 
decisive  proof,  that  the  1260  days  have  not 
expired.  And,  as  for  the  commencement  of 
the  1260  days  in  the  year  533  with  a  supposed 
grant  of  universal  episcopacy  to  the  Pope  by 
the  emperor  Justhiian,  it  will  be  time  enough 
for  me  to  subscribe  to  it,  when  Mr.  If'rere  and 
Mr.  Cuninghame  shall  have  satisfactorily  ac- 
counted for  the  extraordinary  circumstance, 
that  Gregory  the  great,  about  some  60  years 
after  the  date  of  this  imaginary  grant  should 
have  been  quite  ignorant  of  its  existence.  But 
I  have  already  so  exhausted  both  these  themes 
of  controversy,  that  it  were  idle  to  begin 
again.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that,  as  I  thoroughly 
disbelieve  the  predicted  Palestinian  overthrow 
of  Buonaparte  in  the  year  1822  ;  so  I  can  dis- 
cover no  warrant  from  prophecy  for  believing, 
that  he  will  make  Rome  the  seat  of  his  empire. 
He  may,  or  he  may  not:  on  such  a  point, 
prophecy,  so  far  as  I  can  understand  it,  is 
wholly  silent. 

3.  Thus  I  am  wiUing  to  hope,  that  the 
foundations,  which  Mr.  Frere  has  attempted 
to  disturb,  remain  unshaken  ;  and  that  those, 


A 


IIU'l' 


54 

which  he  would  substitute  in  their  place,  arc 
laid  in  the  sand.     His  abstract  arrangement 
of  the   Apocalypse  being  wholly  untenable, 
and  inine  being  proved  to  be  right  by  the 
most  direct  evidence  from  the  text  itself ;  the 
natural  consequence  will  be  this  :  his  general 
scheme  of  interpretation  must  necessarily  be 
erroneous,  though  he   may  very  possibly  be 
rio-ht  in  certain  insulated    particulars;    my 
general  scheme  ofinterpretation,  on  the  con- 
trary, Avill  be  right,  though  in  some  insulated 
particulars  I  may  liave  erred.     Accordingly, 
I  have  more  tlian  once  had  occasion  to  correct 
partkiilars,  and  I  take  this  opportunity  of  ac- 
knowledging that  Mr.  Frere  very  justly  cen- 
sures my  view  of  the  apocalyptic  third  part^ 
and  my  opinion  respecting  the  prolongation  of 
the  lires  of  Daniel's  three  first  beasts  *- ;  but  so 
Avell  were  my  foundations  laid  in  my  abstract 
svnchronical  arrangement  of  the  Revelation, 
tiiat  I  have  never  found  tlie  least  need  to  alter 
my    general  sclieme  :  that   remains  what  it 

*  Mr.  Cunioghame  had  previously  objected  to  my  third 
part,  and  it  now  stands  corrected  in  the  5th  edition  of  my 
\vork.  1  wish  I  had  earlier  known  Mr.  Frcre s  very  proper 
censure  of  my  prolongation  :  I  would  then  have  corrected  diat 
also.  In  saying  this,  I  do  not  pledge  myself  to  adopt  the  views 
either  of  Mr.  Cuninghame  or  of  Mr.  Frere.  I  need  scarcely 
remark,  that  neither  of  these  errors  at  all  affect  my  sj/slem. 
They  may  both  be  corrected  with  perfect  facility.  See  Frerq 
pp.  ^00, 208,  280. 


55 

always  was;  and  every  day  convinces  me 
more  and  more,  that  my  system  is  built  upoii 
truth.  I  need  scarcely  say,  that,  if  my  system 
be  right,  Mr.  Frere's  must  be  w^rong :  and,  as 
it  is  now^  proved  to  be  so  by  argument,  I  am 
fully  persuaded,  that,  when  the  year  1822 
ishall  arrive,  its  fallacy  will  be  no  less  demon- 
strated by  the  stubborn  evidence  of  facts. 
The  same  remark  applies  to  Mr.  Cuning- 
hame's  system. 

III.  Mr.  Frere's  unfortunate  supposition, 
that  the  1260  days  expired  in  the  year  1792, 
tias  thrown  him  wrong  in  his  view  of  the  war 
between  Daniel's  Wilful  king  and  the  two 
kings  of  the  north  and  the  south:  and,  as 
error  is  rarely  single,  he  has  further  treated 
the  whole  of  Daniel's  last  prophecy  in  such  a 
manner,  as  cannot  for  one  moment  be  tole- 
rated. 

He  rightly  pronounces,  as  I  had  done  before 
him,  that  all  the  earlier  part  of  this  prophecy 
is  mainly  designed  as  a  chronological  intro- 
duction to  the  hero  of  the  piece,  namely  the 
Wilful  or  Infidel  king :  but  he  maintains,  that 
the  prophecy  throughout  treats  of  individuals j 
and  that  the  Wilful  king  is  the  individual 
Buonaparte;  whence  he  takes  occasion  to 
censure  my  much  preferable  opinion,  that  the 
Wilful  king  is  no  mere  individual  man,  but  a 
national  community  or  kingdom  or  govern- 


jiii 


I  3/ 


!  I 


1 
li 


k 


\l 


LU 


it 


56 
tn«i/.     As  for  the  prophecy  itself,  he  explains 
It  justly  enough  as  far  as  the  lime  of  Antiochus 
the  great:  but  then  he  leaps  at  once  over  a 
space  of  some  nineteen  or  twenty  centuries 
from  Syria  to  France,  and  from  Antiochus  to 
Louis  XVI.     This  transition  is  made  at  Uan. 
XI.  19,  20;  the  nineteenth  verse  speaking  of 
AnUochus,  and  the  twentieth  of  the  unfortu- 
nate  Louis.     In  the  twenty  first  verse  Buona- 
parte makes  his  appearance,  in  the  character 
of  a  mle  person ;  and  what  succeeds  is  thought 
to  give  us  a  full  account  of  his  more  early 
campaigns.     We  are  now,  according  to  Mr. 
Frere's  theory,  past  the  end  of  the  1260  days! 
Hence,  on  Ids  principles,  he  supposes,  that  the 
war  of  the  Infidel  king  with  the  kings  of  the 
North  and  the  South  is  the  recent  unsuccessful 
war  of  Buonaparte  with  the  emperors  of  Russia 
and  Austria ;  the  monarch  of  Austria  bein"- 
plainly  the  king  of  the  South,  because  AustHa 
signifies  Uie  Sotith.     At  the  close  of  this  war, 
the  Infidel  king,  says  Mr.  Frere,  is  to  pass  ove7', 
that  is,  into  Italy ;  wliere  he  is  to  make  Rome' 
his  capital,  his  French  empire  being  over- 
turned.    Thence  he  is   to   direct  his  arms 
against  Palestine :  and  in  that  country  he  is 
finally  to  perish  in  the  year  1822;  that  is  to 
say,  Uiirty  years  after  the  supposed  termination 
of  the  1 260  days  *. 

•  Pp.  293—476. 


57 

I  will  venture  to  say,  that  nearly  the  whole 
of  this  arrangement  is  perfectly  untenable. 

I.  It  is  not  easy  to  conceive,  how  the  first 
part  of  the  prophecy  can  be  deemed  a  chrono- 
logical introduction  to  the  history  of  the  In- 
fidel king,  if  we  are  to  vault  at  once  over  a 
period  of  near  twenty  centuries  and  to  pass 
abruptly  from  the  Syrian  Antiochus  the  great 
to  the  French  Louis  the  sixteenth.  An  Eng- 
lish historian  might  with  just  as  much  pro- 
priety make  the  Persian  wars  of  Alexander  a 
chronological  introduction  to  the  Normau 
conquest  or  the  Saxon  invasion. 

But  this  is  not  all :  when  the  prophet  has 
finished  speaking  of  Antiochus,  he  tells  us, 
that  a  raiser  of  taxes,  meaning  (says  Mr. 
Frere)  Louis  XVI.  shall  stand  up  in  his 
estate,  in  the  glory  of  the  kingdom  *.  The 
raiser  of  taxes  therefore  is  to  be  the  successor 
of  Antiochus :  for  he  is  to  stand  up  in  his  estate 
and  in  the  glory  of  the  kingdom  of  Syria. 
How  does  this  apply  to  Louis  ? 

Perhaps  Mr.  Frere  may  say,  that  his  estate 
does  not  mean  the  estate  of  Antiochus,  but  the 
estate  of  the  tax-raiser ;  and  the  kingdom,  not 
Syria,  but  France. 

This  turn  however  will  not  serve  his  piir- 
pose.    Both  the  tax-raiser  Louis,  and  the 

*  Dan.  xi.  20. 


I 


t 


f -I 


/., 


MUgjMiggai 


MUUMi 


^g^g^gumis^i^^aa^^m 


':/ 


I  " 


i  i 


58 

vtle  person  Buonaparte,  are  equally  said  to 
^tand  lip  in  ins  estate  *.  Now,  when  the  vile 
person  is  said  to  stand  up  in  iiis  estate^  Mr. 
Frere  understands  the  phrase  to  mean,  not 
that  the  vile  person  should  stand  7^  in  h,s 
OWN  estate,  but  in  the  estate  of  the  tax-raiser, 
or  that  Buonaparte  should  succeed  Louis  in 
the  kingdom  of  France :  hence,  when  the  tax- 
raiser  is  said  to  stand  up  in  his  estate,  Mr. 
Frere  must,  if  he  would  be  consistent,  under- 
stand the  phrase  to  mean,  not  that  the  taX" 
raiser  should  stand  up  in  his  own  estate,  but 
in  the  estate  of  the  king  of  the  North,  or  that 
liOms  should  succeed  Antiochus  in  the  king- 
dom  of  Syria-f.  But,  if  this  be  the  meaning 
of  the  phrase,  it  is  abundantly  clear  that  the 
tax-raiser,  who  succeeds  Antiochus  cannot 
be  Louis:  and,  if  the  tax-raiser  cannot  be 


11' 


'3 


*  Dan.  xi.  21. 
+  If  I  mistake  not,  iSIr.  Frere  has  availed  himself  of  the 
ambiguity  of  our  English  pronoun  his,  which  we  use  both 
reflectively  and  demonstratively.  At  least  it  is  necessary  for 
his  scheme  of  interpretation,  that  the  phrase  his  estate  in 
ver.  20.  should  denote  reflectively  his  own  estate,  but  that 
that  very  same  phrase  in  ver.  21.  should  mean  demonstra- 
tively his  (i.  e.  the  tax-raiser's)  estate.  The  difference  ap- 
pears more  palpably  in  the  Latin.  In  order  to  preserve  his 
system,  Mr.  Frere  must  inevitably  translate  I^D  7j;  in  ver.  20 
hflnsuo  imperio;  ivhWe  yet  he  renders  the  same  10D  by,  as 
it  occurs  in  ver.  21,  by  ///  ejus  imperio.  If  we  may  take 
such  liberties  as  these,  rt  will  not  be  difficult  to  make  a  pro- 
phecy speak  what  suits  us  best. 


"59 

trouis,  then  neither  can  the  vile  person  be 
Buonaparte :  and,  if  the  vile  person  cannot  be 
Buonaparte,  then  neither  can  Lord  Nelson 
be  the  admiral  of  the  sliips  of  Chittira.  la 
short,  all  the  prophecy,  which  has  been  so 
strangely  misapplied  to  Louis  and  the  early 
campaigns  of  Buonaparte,  must  be  restored 
to  those  to  whom  it  has  been  so  rightly  ap- 
plied by  Bishop  Newton. 

2.  Eq-ially  untenable  is  Mr.  Frere's  system 
o:  *  ,^..Auality,  which  he  injudiciously  blames 
me  for  not  having  adopted. 

His  argument  is,  that,  as  all  the  first  part 
of  the  ])rophecy  treats  of  individuals,  the  Wil- 
ful king  must  likewise  be  an  individual. 

Now  I  venture  to  deny  the  postulate :  the 
first  part  of  the  prophecy  does  not  treat  of 
individuals  any  more  than  as  their  actions 
are  the  actions  of  the  power  whicli  they  re- 
present. Accordingly,  even  in  Mr.  Frere's 
own  interpretation,  the  king  of  the  South  in 
ver.  5  is  a  different  individual  from  the  king 
of  the  South  in  ver  6 ;  and  the  king  of  the 
South  again  in  ver.  6  is  a  different  individual 
from  the  king  of  the  South  in  ver  9 ;  while  he 
of  ver.  9  is  again  different  ixom  him  of  ver. 
1 1 .  Just  the  same  remark  applies  to  the  king 
of  the  North,  as  mentioned  in  ver.  6,  7,  1 1 . 
Yet  the  prophet  gives  us  no  intimation,  that 
he  is  speaking  of  different  individuals.  Hence 
5 


V.    t 


I 


^ 


Ut- 


1 1  f 


V' 


A 


U    "J' 


'f 


i  It 


i  I 


60 

it  i^  manifest  that  by  the  king  of  the  North  in 
the  early  part  of  the  prophecy  he  means 
neither  an  Antiochus  nor  a  Seleucus  exclu- 
sivehfj  but  the  kingdom  or  dynasty  of  Syria ; 
and  in  like  manner,  by  the  king  of  the  South, 
neither  a  Ptolemy  Philadelphiis  nor  a  Ptolemy 
Philopater  individuallyy  but  the  kijigdoin  or 
dynasty  of  Egypt.  Such  being  the  case,  the 
Iiifidel  king  cannot  mean  either  Buonaparte 
or  any  other  mere  individualy  but  a  kingdom 
or  dynasty  or  government  actuated  by  the 
principles  of  a  revolutionary  infidelity.  Of 
the  actions  of  this  kingdom  Buonaparte's 
actions  ai^  only  a  portion,  just  as  the  actionB 
of  Antiochus  or  of  Ptolemy  are  but  portions  of 
the  deeds  ascribed  to  the  Northern  and 
Southern  kingdoms. 

This  error  of  Mr.  Frere's  has  made  him 
inconsistent  with  himself.  He  says,  that  the 
reign  of  Infidelity  lasts  from  the  year  1792  to 
the  year  1822,  and  that  the  Infidel  king  is  the 
individual  Buonaparte*.  According  to  this 
arrangement  therefore  Buonaparte  ought  to 
have  mounted  the  throne  in  the  year  1792. 
Now  he  nas  not  first  consul  until  the  year 
1802,  nor  emperor  until  the  year  1804. 

3.  As  the  war  of  the  Infidel  king  with  the 
kings  of  the  North  and  the  South  is  placed  at 


♦  Pp.  .37,  58. 


I 


61 

the  time  of  the  end,  and  as  Mr.  Frere  believes 
that  we  are  already  in  the  time  of  the  end;  he 
unhappily  appHes  an  event  yet  future  to  Buo- 
naparte's disasters  in  Russia  and  Saxony. 

The  success  is  just  what  might  have  been 
anticipated.  Buonaparte,  instead  of  passing 
over  into  Italy  and  making  himself  emperor 
of  Rome,  never  went  into  Italy  at  all ;  but 
returned,  as  all  the  world  knows,  from  Elba 
into  France :  and,  instead  of  being  victorious 
at  the  close  of  his  campaigns  with  the  Northern 
and  Southern  kings,  as  the  words  of  Daniel 
palpably  intimate*  ;  he  was  heartily  beaten  by 
them,  and  then  compelled  to  abdicate. 

Mr.  Frere,  in  his  attempt  to  apply  this 
prophecy  to  Buonaparte's  late  disasters,  gives 
us  another  specimen  of  arguing  from  a  petitio 
principii.  When  Daniel's  king  of  the  North 
attacks  the  Infidel  king,  he  comes  against  him, 
not  only  with  a  numerous  cavalry,  but  like- 
wise icith  many  ships.  Unfortunately  the 
Russian  emperor  employed  no  ships:  how 
therefore  are  v/e  to  dispose  of  the  ships,  used 
by  the  king  of  the  North  against  the  Infidel 

*  He  shall  enter  into  the  countries,  and  shall  overjlozc  and 
pass  over :  he  shall  enter  also  into  the  glorious  land,  and 
many  countries  shall  be  overthrown.  Dan.  xi.  40,  41.  All 
this  the  Wilful  king  does  in  despite  of  the  Northern  and 
Southern  kings;  and  all  this  surely  points  out  a  series  of 
'!:ictories  connected  with  his  invasion  of  Palestine.  Mr.  Frere 
discovcfs  in  it  Buouaprt^'s  disasters  md flight  to  Elba, 


^1 


t 


{ ' 


r 


\ 


y 


i» 


•^H| 


h 


I. 


u 


62 

liing  ?  Mr.  Frere  says,  that  by  ships  we  are 
certainly  to  understand  cannons :  and  he 
proves  llie  point  in  the  following  manner. 
The  war  of  the  Infidel  Jung  icith  the  kings 
af  tlie  North  and  the  South  must  mean  the 
war  of  Buonaparte  with  Russia  and  Austria 
in  the  years  1812,  1813,  1814.  But  the  king 
of  the  North  is  said  to  have  used  many  ships  : 
and  the  Emperor  of  Russia  used  no  ships, 
though  he  used  many  cannons.  Therefore 
tiie  SHIPS  of  the  Northern  king  must  mean  the 
Russian  Emperor's  cannons,  because  there  is 
plainhj  nothing  else  that  they  can  mean  ^.  I 
am  not  convinced  by  this  argument. 

*  See  pp.  453 — 458.  I  am  not  conscious  t^iat  T  have 
misreprestnted  Mr.  Frere,  by  condensing  what  appears  to 
me  the  drift  of  his  argument  in  this  syllogism.  If  I  have, 
while  I  readily  beg  his  pardon,  I  must  request  to  have  a 
distinct  exposition  of  what  his  argument  does  mean.  V\\  hi» 
t«xt,  Mr.  Frere  says,  And  with  many  ships,  or  with 
A  NUMEROUS  ARTILLERY.  Then  he  subjoins  in  a  note. 
The  nmttion  here  made  o/'man  y  shits  presents  a  diffuulti/^ 
I  must  allow ;  for  the  Emperor  of  Russia  certain!}/  did  not 
attack  Buonaparte  xdth  many  ships.  But  I 'Jduk  Ihave 
so  clearly  shewn,  that  this  part  of  the  prophevi/ mast  neces- 
SARiLY  'cfer  to  the  late  overthrorc  of  Buonaparte,  that  this 
uord  cannot  came  any  seriotts  objection.  We  may  suppose, 
that  the  prophet  had  to  make  choice  of  an  object  to  represent 
that  poKcrjul  engine  of  uar,  artillery^  not  then  knoun, 
which  was  so  formidable  an  instrument  in  the  attacks  of  the 
Russian  armies;  and  that  he  chose  that  object  tchich  he  con- 
iidered  to  correspond  with  it  in  poner  and  utility.  ^^  e  may^ 
therefore  conclude,  tJiat,  in  the  minute  description  given  of 


K 


'v.. 


,    'v^*''^injf  JJlWriBH^  =a. 


Whether  Austria  be  tlie  destined  king  of 
the  South,  who  is  to  war  with  the  Infidel 
King  at  the  yet  future  time  of  the  end,  I 
sliall  not  pretend  to  determine ;  I  shall  con- 
tent myself  with  observing  that  Mr.  Frere's 
proof  of  the  point  is  built  upon  an  error.  He 
says,  that  Austria  signifies   the  South,    ^v'v 

the  attach  made  by  the  king  of  the  North  upon  the  Infidel 
king,  the  mention  of  his  numerous  artillery,  that  impmiant 
limb  of  a  modem  army,  would  not  be  omitled.--N ow,  un- 
less  I  wholly  misapprehend  Mr.  Frere,  the  purport  of  hi» 
argument  is  this.     /  have  clearly  shewn,  that  this  part  of 
the  prophecy  necessarily  refers  to  the  late  overthrow  of 
Buonaparte  by  the  Emperor  of  Russia.     But  the  Emperor 
of  Russia  had  no  ships,  though  he  had  a  numerous 
ARTILLERY.    It  IS  improbable  however,  that  his  numerous 
ARTILLERY  should  be  left  unnoticed  by  the  prophet.     But  he 
does  leave  it  unnoticed,  unless  he  means  to  describe  it  under 
the  appellation  of  ships.     Therefore  the  ships    of  the 
Northern  king  must  mean  the  c Af^N on s  of  the  Russian 
emperor. 

I  have  added  this  note,  lest  the  reader  should  think  that  I 
had  unhandsomely  attempted  to  exhibit  Mr.  Frere's  argu- 
ment  in  a  ludicrous  point  of  view.     I  should  be  sorry  to  act 
m  any  such  maimer :  but  his  argument,  so  far  as  I  can  un- 
derstand it,  when  thrown  into  a  regular  syllogism,  presents 
the  exact  form  iu  which  it  here  appears.     Many  words  fre-^ 
quently  darken    the  sense  of  an   argument :  but,  when  its 
several  members  are  briefly  and  syllogistically  marshalled,  its 
conclusiveness  or  its  inconclusiveness  is  immediately  presented 
to  the  mind's  eye.     Tims,  in  the  present  instance,  Mr.  Frere  s 
proof,  that  SHIPS //zeflw  cannons,  rests  ultimately  on  the 
assumption  ih^t  the  prophecy  in  question  must  necessarily 
f'^er  to  the  hte  overthrow  of  Buonaparte  by  the  Emperor  of 
nussla. 


i'n 


■'^'ii^4^^^Wi 


'■f 


■Im 


'm 


W  V 


I: 


\i 


^¥ 


\  H 


h  h 


denlly  supposing  it  to  be  derived  from  the 
Latin  Auster :  whereas  Austria  really  signifies 
the  East-Land,  so  called  by  reason  of  its  re- 
lative position  to  the  rest  of  Germany  from  the 
Gothic  Oster-Landt*. 

IV.  Mr.  Frere  lays  it  down  as  a  principle, 
that  every  chronological  prophecy  is  to  be 
computed  from  the  time  when  it  was  revealed 
to  the  prophet :  and  on  this  ground  he  main- 
tains, that  the  vision  of  the  ram  and  the  he- 
goat  is  to  be  reckoned  from  the  year  A.  C. 
553,  when  it  was  seen  by  Daniel ;  censuring 
me,  because  I  conjecturally  computed  it  from 
the  first  year  of  Cyrus ;  when  by  the  union  of 
Media  and  Persia  in  one  empire  the  single 
ram  began  to  have  two  horns. 

I  deny  the  justice,  bothof  tlie  principle,  and 
of  its  present  application. 

1.  A  chronological  prophecy  may  or  may 
not,  be  reckoned  as  Mr.  Frere  supposes.  I 
am  only  concerned  however  to  produce  in- 
stances of  the  negative. 

Daniel's  prophecy  then  of  the  four  beasts 
clearly  cannot  be  reckoned  from  the  time 
when  he  beheld  the  vision.  For  he  actually 
saw  all  the  four  beasts  come  up  out  of  the  sea. 
But  the  Babylonian  empire  had  come  up  long 

*  Thus  the  eastern  Goths  were  called  Ostro^Goths  in 
contradistinction  to  their  brethren  the  IViti-Goths  or  U!es((r^ 
Goths. 


65 

before  Daniel  was  born ;  and  the  prophecy 
commences  with   the   rise  of   that  empire 
Therefore  the  prophecy  is  not  to  be  reckoned 
from  the  time   when  he  beheld  the  vision 
but  ;rom  a  long  prior  date ;  a  date,  I  suspect,' 
not  later  than  the  days  of  Nimrod  *.     In  a 
similar  manner,  the  seventy  weeks  are  clearly 
not  to  be  computed  from  the  year,  in  which 
the  prophecy  was  delivered  to  Daniel,  but 
from  a  posterior  date* 

Hence  we  find,  that  the  computation  of 
chronological  prophecies  has  nothing  to  do 
with  the  particular  epoch  of  their  being  re- 
vealed;  they  being   reckoned   from  a  date, 
sometimes  earlier  and  sometimes  later. 

2.  Mr.  Frere  has  been  no  less  unfortunate 
in  the  particular  application  of  his  rule,  than 
in  his  laying  down  of  the  rule  itself. 

The  prophecy  of  the  ram  and  the  he-o-oat 
contains  not  the  slightest  hint,  that  the  num, 
her  mentioned  in  ver.  14.  is  to  be  calculated 
from  the  time  that  Daniel  saw  the  vision  :  on 
the  contrary,  we  are  expressly  told,  that  it 
sets  forth  the  chronological  durqtioti  of  the 
vision  itself  that  is  to  say,  of  the  several  ac^ 

*  I  have  (My  discussed  the  rise  and  progress  of  the  old 
i5ab3aon.co-As.yrian  empire  in  tlie  6th  book  of  my  work  on 
Ihe  Ongin  of  Pagan  Idolatry.    Tt  this  I  beg- to  refer  the 
reader,  if  he  wishes  to  understand  the  entire  purport  of  the 
remark  in  the  text. 

F 


\V~ 


^iil^i 


11  ■  1 


i' 


h' 


f  •  ^' 

I     if' 


i 


K  I 


•  ii 


tfons  exhihiled  in  the  vmotu     Now  the  vision 
commences    willi    the  pliautasm    of  a  Uvc 
liorned  mm  standing  on   the  bank   of  the 
river  Ulai,  and  it  terminates  with  the  ii>ci- 
pient  cleansing  of  the  ?-anciuary  *.     Hence 
it  h  manifest,  lliat  the  number  is  to  be  reckoned 
from  tlie  time  tlial  tlie  Iwo-borned  ram  began 
fo  stand  on  tlie  bank  of  tlie  river  to  llie  time 
when  the  sanctuary  begins  to  be  cleansed. 
But  the  two-horned  ram  is  a  symbol  of  tlie 
two  kingdoms  of  Media  and  Persia,  united  in 
one  empire  and  ujider  one  government:  fox 
the  unity  of  Hie  ram  as  disliijctly  proves  tte 
coalition,  as  the  duality  of  tlie  horns  proves 
that  the  single  empire  was  made  up  of  two 
kingdoms.     Hence  the  tuo  independent  king- 
doms of  Media  and  Persia  could  not  ha\^ 
been  jointly  represented  by  this  one  symbol, 
anterior  to  the  time  that  they  became  one 
empire  under  one  government ;  tiecause,  pre- 
vious to  that  iime,  lliey  were  (in  the  language 
of  symbolical  prophecy)  tn-o  beasts,  not  two 
horns  of  one  beast.     But  they  did  not  become 
cne  empire  until  the  first  year  of  Cyrus :  and, 
as  the  prophet  beheld  only  one  ram,  he  beheld 
only  one  empire.     Therefore  the  number  can- 
not be  calculated  from  an  earlier  date  than 
the  first  year  of  Cyrus.    Again :  thj  visioQ 

•  Dan.  vi'.i.  3,  14, 


67 

closes  with   the  incipient  cleansing   of   the 
sanctuary ;  therefore  the  incipient  cleansing, 
of  the  sanctuary  marks  the  termination  of  the 
number.     But  I  have  shewn  very  fully  in 
my  abstract  chronological  arrangement  of  the 
prophecies  of  Daniel  and  St.  John,  that  the 
sanctuary  begins  to  be  cleansed  at  the  termi* 
halionofthe  1260  days,  and  that  the    1260 
days  terminate  synchronically  with  the  num- 
ber mentioned  in  the  vision  of  the  ram  and 
the  he-goal.     Of  this  abstract  demonstration 
however,    which  has  perfectly  satisfied  one 
who  is  no  ordinary  commentator,  my  valued 
fiieufl  Mr. Cuninghame,  does  Mr.  Frere  take 
not  the  least  notice  ;  though  he  himself  very 
properly  says,  that  all  sijnchronisms  ought  to 
be  abstractedly  established  from  a  critical  in- 
spection of  the  mere  text  itself,  before  tee  at- 
tempt to   apply  any  prediction  to  facts.      It 
certainly  therelbre  appears  to  me,  that  Mr. 
Frere  ought  to  have  confuted  my  demonstra- 
tion that  these  two  numbers  end  synchroni- 
cally, ere  he  ventured  to  assign  two  totally 
different  terminations  to  them  :  for,  until  tliat 
demonstration  be  confuted,  as  he  makes  the 
1260  days  end  in  the  year  1792,  he  ought 
also  to  have  made  the  other  number  end  in 
the  same  year.     But  this  of  course  would  not 
nave  suited  his  unfounded  dogma,  that  every 
chronological  vision  is  to  be  reckoned  from 

F  2 


|i 


lamttiiiaKi  itM  111  mtlli 


MgwyWHJiMittHM^ttdiii 


> 


!    f 


ft. 


f 


68 

the  time  that  it  uas  seen  hy  the  prophet : 
hence  the  dogma  was  honoured  at  the  ex- 
pence  of  tlie  demonstration. 

We  ca^nnoi  positively  determine  the  precise 
point,  at  wliich  the  vision  of  the  ram  and 
the  he-goat  commences,  until  we  know  tlie 
precise  point  at  which  it  ends:  and  we  can- 
not know  the  precise  point  at  which  it  ends, 
until  the  126©  days  shall  have  expired.  That 
they  liave  not  yet  expired,  is  certain  :  both 
because  the  Jews  have  7iot  yet  begun  to  be 
restored ;  and  because  we  are  at  present  /// 
the  midst  of  the  vials^  the  six  first  of  which 
must  all  be  inclnded  within  the  1260  days. 
So  i'ar  as  this  however  we  may  be  tolerably 
sure,  that  of  the  three  readings  of  the  num- 
ber mentioned  in  Daniel  viii.  14,  namely 
2400,  2300,  and  2200,  the  two  last  must  be 
erroneous ;  because,  if  they  be  reckoned 
backward  even  from  the  present  year,  and 
Iherefore  nuich  more  from  that  yet  future 
year  in  which  the  1260  days  are  destined  tu 
expire,  they  will  fall  very  lar  short  of  any 
point  at  which  the  vision  of  the  ram  and  the 
he-goat  may  reasonably  be  thought  to  have 
commenced.  Hence  it  will  follow,  that  the 
lapse  of  time  has  irrefragably  proved  the 
reading  2400  to  be  the  true  reading  of  the 
number  in  (juestion. 

Mr.  Cuniughame    indeed,     who    rightly 

Q 


69 

makes  the  number  in  this  vision  end  synchro- 
nically  with  the  1260  days,  supposes  the  true 
reading  to  be  2300;  and,  as  he  makes  the 
1260  days  end  in  the  year  1792,  he  thence 
very  consistently  calculates    backward     his 
number  2300  from  that  year,  and  makes  the 
vision  of  the  ram  and  the  he-goat  commence 
at  the  point  to  w^hich  that  retrograde  calcu- 
lation has  brought  him.     But,  while  this  is 
perfectly  right  in  theory,  it  is  perfectly  wrong 
in  application ;  because  the  1260  days  most 
assuredly  did  not  end  in  the  year  ]  792.     For 
we  are  all  equally  agreed,  that  the  seven  vials 
are  posterior  to  that  year ;  and  it  has  been 
proved,   that  the  six  first  vials  and  the  com- 
mencing point  of  the  seventh  must  necessarily 
be  included  within  the   1260   days.     Conse- 
quently,   the    1260   davs  cannot  have  com- 
menced before  the  effusion  even  of  the  first 
vial.     But,  if  the  1260  days  be  not  yet  ex- 
pired, then  neither  2300  nor  2200  can  he  the 
true  reading  of  the  number  *, 

*  Mr.  Frere,  like  myself,  maintains  C400  to  be  the  ge- 
nuine reading ;  but  I  see  not  uliat  cogency  there  is  in  his 
mode  of  proving  the  point.  He  says,  that  all  sacred  num- 
bers are  capable  of  being  divided  by  three :  but  2400  can 
thus  be  divided,  and  2300  c^mnot :  therefore  2400  is  the 
genuine  reading,  p.  246.  I  cannot  discern  ^^hat  pecuhar  sa- 
credness  there  is  in  a  capability  of  division  by  three,  even  if 
Mr.  Frere  were  accurate  in  asserting  that  all  the  prophetic 
numbers  may  be  thus  divided.     But  he  is  not  accurate  :  Da- 


i 


\.. 


V 


i':' 


I     f  I 


70 

Supposing,  as  I  do,  that  the  1260  days  will 
expire  in  the  year  1866, 1  thence,  agreeably  to 
the  synchronism   wliich   I   had  abstractedh/ 
established,    computed  backward  from    that 
point  the  number  2400  which  is  now  proved 
by  time  itself  to  be  the  genuine  reading ;  in 
order  that  I  might  thus  arrive  at  the  com- 
mencement of  the  vision  of  the  ram  and  the 
he^goat.     Such  a  computation  brought  me  to 
the  first  year  of  Cyrus ;  Avhich  even  a  priori 
was  the  most  probable  date  of  th^e  vision,  be- 
cause the  symbohcal  ram  had  no  existence  as 
a  single  beast  before   that  year,  and  because 
he  was  then  first  produced  by  the  imion  of  the 
hitherto  distinct  Idtigdomsy  or   in  symbolical 
phraseology,    the  two  beasts   of  Media  and 
Persia.    On  these  principles,  I  esteem  tlie  first 
year  of  Cyrus,  or  the  first-second  year  of  that 
monarch,  the  most  probable  dale  of  the  vision  : 
though,  I  repeat  it,  we  cannot  attain  to  ab- 
solute  certaihty  until  the  1260  days  shall  have 
expired ;  because  the  termination  of  the  one 
number  depends  upon  tlie  termination  of  the 
other.     At  any  rate,  we  may  be  sure  that 
the   vision  cannot  be  dated  before  the    first 
year   of  Cyrus,  for   the  best  of  all  possible 

iiiel's  70  week^  for  instance  cannot  be  divided  by  lliree; 
neiiher  can  the  apocalyptic  1  )  days  oi  peisecution,  iiur  the 
3J  days  during  which  the  witnesses  He  dead. 


n 

reasons;  the  single  symbolical  ram  had  m 
existence  xinWX  tfi;^  year. 

This  decidedly  proves,  that  I  have  ascribed 
the  pushings  of  the  ram  to  their  proper  cor. 
responding  events  in  history,   and  that  Mr. 
Frere    is    mistaken    in    supposing   them   to 
relate   to    the   conquests  of  Cyrus  previous 
to  the  year  A.C.  536.      If  he  will  reperus^ 
my   citations  from   history,  lie  may  perhaps 
think  that  he  lias  been  too  hasty  in  his  cen- 
sure.     The  victories  anterior  to   that  year 
were  not  acliieved  by  the  single  ram  which 
Jiad  then  no  existence  as  one  beast,  but  by 
the  two  distinct  though  allied  beasts  or  king- 
doms of  Media  and  Persia. 

On  the  whole,  I  see  no  reason  to  retract 
an  iota  of  what  I  haye  w  ritten  on  this  sub- 
ject, 

V.  Mr.  Frere  censures  my  opinion  respect- 
ing the  ten  primary  Gothic  kingdoms,  which 
I  suppose  tp  be  meant  by  the  ten  horns  of  the 
Itomaq  beast,  for  reasons  so  fvitiie  that  they  do 
not  appear  tp  me  to  require  an  answer. 

His  ovv^n  conjecture,  that  the  ten  horns 
mean  the  ion  states  of  Ravenna,  Lombardy, 
Kome,  Naples,  Tuscany,  France,  Austria,' 
Spain,  Portugal,  and  Britain,  may  be  con- 
futed  in  a  very  few  words. 

The  little  horn,  which  he  rigliHy  judges  to 
be  the  Papacy,  is   described  by  Daniel  as 


I  / 


k' 


.1 


i 


•  I 


L  }.    : 


I  :       \ 


\ 


II 


\ 


72 

springing  up  behind  or  after  the  ten  larger 
horns.  But,  if  the  little  iy-k^  sprang  up  he- 
hind  or  afte)'  tliem,  then  they  must  have  been 
in  existence  anterior  to  the  rise  of  the  little 
horn.  Now  the  little  horn,  by  Mr.  Frere's 
own  account  was  in  existence  in  the  year  533 ; 
because  he  says  that  the  saints  were  then 
given  into  its  hand,  and  the  saints  plainly 
could  not  be  given  to  a  non-entity.  But,  if 
the  little  horn  existed  in  the  year  533,  the 
ten  horns  must  have  existed  before  that  year. 
Now  I  need  scarcely  remark,  that  many  of 
Mr.  Frere's  ten  kingdoms  did  not  exist  until 
lonir  after  that  time  *. 

VI.  Mr.  Frere  censures  my  assigning  only 
four  chapters  of  the  Apocalypse  to  the  little 
book. 

Whether  his  arrangement  or  mine  be  the 
most  probable,  will  best  appear  by  comparing 
them  together.  St.  John  speaks  of  a  sealed 
book  and  a  little  book.  Now,  as  things  are 
great  or  small  by  comparison,  it  is  hard  to 
say,  why  the  second  of  these  books  should  be 

■*  pp.  133,  154.  Sir  Isaac  Newton  justl}^  remarks  on  lliis 
subject,  tliat,  when  the  Western  empire  was  divided  by  the 
Gotlis  into  ten  sovereignties,  some  of  these  kingdoms  at  length 
fell,  and  new  ones  arose:  but,  whatever  uas  their  number 
AFTERWARDS,  thej/  are  still  called  the  Ten  k'm^s from  their 
¥1RST  number.  Observ.  on  Dan.  c.  6.  p.  73.  I  quite 
agree  with  Sir  Isaac  in  his  view  of  the  matter,  and  therefoi^e 
necessarily  esteem  Mr.  Frert's  view  erroneotts. 


73 

called  little,  except  in  contradistinction  to  the 
iirst^  On  this  principle,  taken  in  conjunction 
with  the  interna  1^1^  idence  derived  from  the 
text  itself,  I  pronounced  the  little  book  to  con- 
tain  Rev.  xi,  xii,  xiii,  and  ^iv;  while  to  the 
larger  sealed  book,  of  which  I  deemed  the 
little  book  a  codicil,  I  assigned  Rev.  vi — x, 
XV— xxii.  Tims,  agreeably  to  the  intimation 
of  the  prophet,  I  made  the  sealed  book  very 
considerably  larger  tlian  the  little  book.  Mr. 
Frere  however  dislikes  this  arrangement :  and 
thence,  by  way  of  improving  it,  he  would  give 
to  the  sealed  book  only  Rev.  vi — x  ;  while  he 
more  liberally  allots  to  the  little  book  Rev. 
xi — xxii.  By  such  a  plan  he  makes  the  little 
book  about  thrice  as  long  as  the  sealed  book, 
and  thus  effectually  destroys  its  character  of 
littleness :  for  it  becomes  in  tact  by  much  the 
larger  book  of  the  two  *. 

VII.  Mr.  Frere  supposes  the  Infidel  power 
to  be  the  scarlet-coloured  apocalyptic  beast 
that  rises  out  of  the  abyss,  and  distinguishes  it 
from  the  ten-horned  beast  that  came  up  out 
of  the  sea  -f, 

I  can  see  no  difference  between  these  two 
supposed  distinct  beasts  :  for,  as  all  their  cha- 
racteristics are  the  same,  so  likewise  is  their 

♦  Pp.  25— 28. 

t  Pp.  9y.237;23S. 


/ 


tit 


% 


t'--  h  ^ 


r  "' 


74 

drigin.  With  Mr.Frere  I  once  imagihecl  that 
by  the  bottomless  pit^  as  the  Greek  abyssus  is 
unhappily  rendered  by  mv  translators,  we 
were  to  understand  hell:  but  a  more  accu- 
rate inquiry  has  fully  convinced  me,  that  the 
sea  and  the  abyss  mean  precisely  the  same ; 
and,  accordingly,  I  have  so  stated  the  matter 
in  the  5th  edition  of  my  work.  When  there- 
fore the  scarlet  beast  is  said  to  come  up  out  of 
the  abyss,  the  expression  means  only  that  he 
came  up  out  of  the  sea  agreeably  to  Rev.  xiii. 
L  With  Mede  and  all  our  best  commenta- 
tors, I  think  it  indisputable,  that  the  beast  of 
Rev.xiii,and  the  beast  of  Rev.  xvii,  are  one  and 
the  same  symbol*  Mr.  Galloway  and  Mr. 
Ettrick  have  both  tried  to  split  the  monster 
hito  two,  but  with  no  better  success  than  Mr. 
Frere* 

VIII.  All  that  Mr.  Frere  says  of  the  terri- 
torial possessions  of  the  four  beasts  of  Daniel 
is  to  me  perfectly  unsatisfactory  *.  The  reply 
to  it  is  simple,  *and  I  think  unanswerable :  at 
least,  Mr.  Frere  has  not  answered  it. 

If  the  body  of  the  Babylonian  beast  is  to  be 
confined  to  Babylonia,  and  the  body  of  the 
Medo-Persian  beast  to  Media  and  Persia; 
then,  by  parity  of  reasoning,  the  body  of  the 

*  P.  146. 


75 

Grecian  beast  must  be  confiaed  to  Greece, 
and  the  body  of  the  Roman  beast  to  Italy  i 
for,  if  the  other  fMsessions  of  the  two  first 
beasts  are  to  be  deemed  only  conquests  and 
not  members  of  their  respective  bodies ;  then> 
analogously,  the  other  possessions  of  the  two 
latter  beasts  must  be  deemed  only  conquests 
and  not  menibers  of  their  respective  bodies. 
But,  according  to  this  arrangement,  where 
sliall  we  find  four  heads  or  horns  for  the 
Grecian  beast,  and  ten  horns  for  the  Roman 
beast?  Horns  are  certainly  members  of  a 
body  :  but  the  greatest  part  of  the  horns  both 
of  the  Greek  and  the  Roman  beast  must  be 
sought  for  out  of  Greece  and  Italy ;  which, 
on  Mr.  Frere's  plan,  are  the  exclusive  bodies  of 
those  two  beasts.  For  he  has  no  right  to 
extend  the  bodies  of  the  Uro  latter  beasts  be- 
yond the  limits  of  Greece  and  Italy,  if  he 
chooses  to  contract  tiie  bodies  of  the  two  first 
beasts  within  the  limits  of  Babylonia  and 
Medo-Persia. 

IX.  I  have  now  noticed  the  principal 
matters  in  Mr.  Frere's  book :  and  I  certainly 
do  not  feel  myself  iu  any  wise  compelled  to 
adopt  his  speculations  in  preference  to  my 
own.  In  our  views  of  the  filth  vial,  we  nearly 
agre«t  * :  but  tiiis  is  only  an  instance,  which 

*  Pp.  62,  462,  and  prefixed  chart.     Mr.  Fiere  dates  the 
commeacemeut  oi  this  vial  too  late,  in  tixiug  it  to  Oct.  J  8 12: 


/■   '1 


i 


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t 


Tif  •'] 


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1  ^■iii 


•J 


?f^rvf\s  to  shew,  that  a  commenlalor  may  be 
light  ill  certain  insulated  particulai's/ while 
Ins  general  system  is  paI|3[*^;fofy  untenable  be- 
cause built  upon  imsoutld  foundations.  Such 
I  am  compelled  to  esteem  the  general  system 
of  Mr.  Frere.  It  is  built  upon  his  abstract 
arrangement  of  sijnchronisnis :  but  that  ar- 
rangement has  been  proved  to  be  erroneous : 
the  necessary  consequence  therefore  is,  that 
the  building  wliich  it  supports  is  insecure  ; 
though  some  detached  rooms,  which  are  clear 
of  the  faulty  parts,  may  be  tolerably  safe  tene- 
ments. 

X.  Of  the  apocryphal  Esdras  I  shall  say 
nothing  :  and  I  tliink  it  would  be  prudent  in 
M\\  Frere,  before  he  says  any  more  about 
him,  to  prove  that  his  writings  ate  canonical. 
Until  tliat  be  done,  all  attempts  to  explain  his 
propliecies  will  be  just  bo  much  labour  lost. 

and  he  is  certainly  uiistaken  in  supposing  it  to  have  ended 
April  (),  1B14  :  for  it  was  then  in  fact  at  its  very  height. 
Whetlier  it.be  eidti  j/et  exhausted,  time  alone  can  determine. 
Equally  mistaken  has  Mr.  Frere  been  in  asserting,  that  the 
filth  vial  would  so  throw  Buonaparte  into  permanent  obscurity, 
that  he  should  not  be  actively  concerned  in  the  principal 
events  of  the  next  vial.  See  p.  462.  Buonapart^  has  em- 
erged from  his  obscurity:  and  the  sixth  vial  is  yei  future* 


FINIS. 


1 1- 


■il 


Ldw  ajid  Gilbert,  Fnnters,  bt.  John's-5i]uare,  Loudati. 


-?. 


